


Crisis: Hunters and Heroes

by Waternymph1995



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), Supergirl (TV 2015), Supernatural, The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alternate Season/Series 12, Castiel Deserves Better (Supernatural), Crisis on Infinite Earths Crossover Event (CW DC TV Universe), F/M, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Protective Dean Winchester, Team as Family, suprise ship
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-17 17:53:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29596524
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waternymph1995/pseuds/Waternymph1995
Summary: "The angels...are screaming," Cas managed to gasp out and clutched his head in pain. Far in the distance the sky turned blood red.For life to prevail the Monitor knows that the greatest champions from every Earth must be brought together. Team Free Will finds themselves thrust into battle with heroes from across the multiverse. Now with an eighth Paragon to find and the Antimatter wave incoming, time has truly run out. The Crisis is now upon them all.
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 8
Kudos: 10





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Crisis begins.
> 
> Author's Note: I do not own anything under the purview of the CW. This story came to me while watching Crisis on Infinite Earths while wishing for a better ending to Supernatural and this fic was born. In terms of timelines this story takes place towards the beginning of Supernatural Season 12 and disregards anything after 12X07, baring a few ideas. Pretty much ignoring most of season 14 and 15, Evil Chuck won't be a thing here. This fic is purely for fun and if you have any comments or requests let me know. Please feed your fic writers, lol. Slow burn Destiel endgame. Aiming for weekly updates but you know how life happens :)

"In the beginning, there was only one...a single black empty. Then the empty found release and the darkness broke, filling it with life. With the Multiverse. Every existence multiplied by possibility and spread out before space and time in infinite measure. Civilizations rose and fell and rose again to cross reality's grasping expanse. Life, a precious gift persevering in the face of every obstacle, until finally, the age of Heroes and Hunters was born. Chaos, the constant enemy of life, kept at bay by champions from across the Multiverse. Joining forces to fight on behalf of all creation, they found each other just in time."

A car burns hot, devouring the asphalt beneath it and the masked killers inside it. Looking onwards a Robin and a Hawk breathe deeply. Their injuries painful but not life threatening. They would have been sore tomorrow. If only there was to be a tomorrow. The sky bleeds and the two heroes only have enough time to catch sight of the destruction before they cease to exist along with Earth 9.

"Because now, the entire Multiverse is about to come under attack."

An old reporter sits upon a bench on Earth 89, the silhouette of a bat hanging in the ruby skies above. He whispers under his breath the wish that the old crusader is watching over the city. But this time the dawn will be darker than the night.

On Earth 666, a planet ravaged by angels and humanity almost extinct, there was no warning. Bobby Singer lowered his binoculars from where he'd been spying on Michael's encampment as the grey skies over head changed color. "Balls." He groaned. In the blink of the eye the Apocalypse ended.

"There is a malevolent force at work, one driven by a singular goal. The destruction of all there is."

The retired Boy Wonder walked down a quiet street in a peaceful Gotham on Earth 66. His furred companion noticed the changing clouds first. "Holy crimson skies of death!" the old man cried out and clutched his dog's leash a little closer.

"I have planned. There are those who say I have schemed. But the time for preparation has passed. The Crisis is now upon us all."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Sammy, you even listening to me?" Dean Winchester had been going on about their current hunt. The Devil was missing. Again. The slick little bastard just never could seem to stay gone. And the brothers nearly had him back in Hollywood. They had been so close and now Lucifer was in the wind, looking for a new vessel. Dean had just about had enough. Their mom was away, quote on quote finding herself again. Their resident Angel was in the back seat probably sending the King of Hell emoticons. And to top it all off his damn little brother was ignoring him.

"SAMMY!"

"What?!" The huge walking moose yanked out his earbuds.

"I guess that answers that question." The oldest Winchester narrowed his eyes at the dark road ahead of them.

"What question?" Sam paused the podcast he'd been listening to.

Reaching over Dean snatched up Sam's phone, "An analysis on thirteen century tapestry making." In playful disgust he tossed the device back to his scowling little brother.

Sam caught the phone before it could collide with the car's floor, "It's educational."

"It's lame." Dean threw back, "Why listen to that when you could listen to this?" and he cranked up his car's radio.

"Because not all of us left our artistic tastes in the 1980's." Sam smiled, "Jerk."

"Bitch." Dean glared out the corner of his eyes.

"I actually this Led Zeppelin song." Castiel interjected, finally putting his phone down.

Dean nearly swerved the impala off the road, "Cas!"

"Yes Dean?" Nonplussed the angel tilted his head to the side. If Dean found the small act adorable as always no one had to know.

"This is ACDC. I thought I taught you better than that." Dean griped but couldn't help but smile fondly on his music and pop culture pupil and Cas smiled back.

Yes, their lives were in a constant state of crisis and fighting, but every once in a while there were these moments. Moments when the three of them could just breathe and be a family. And like every one of those moments that Dean loved so much it ended far too soon.

Cas gasped and clutched his head in a death grip.

This time Dean did take the car off the road. Throwing it into park he swerved around in his seat, "Cas what is it?"

Cas only groaned in pain. The air around the three simmered in the high-pitched wail of an angel's true voice.

Dean was worried now. "Cas!? Talk to me right the hell now." he leaned across the back seat and tried and failed to pry the angel's hands of his head.

"Angel radio." Cas managed to get out.

"Yeah we got that. What are they saying?" Sam had pulled his angel blade out while keeping a look out on their surroundings, ready to be attacked at any moment. Whatever had Cas so worked up had to be big, and close.

"They…aren't saying… anything," the angel forced out reply.

Cas gasped and threw his arms down. Dean, who had been hovering as close to Cas as the front seat would allow him, pressed his back against the steering wheel. Why? Castiel's eyes were glowing, no blazing the bright blue of angel grace. The hunter even thought he could hear Cas's wings rusting in agitation. And on the angel's face was abject fear. Fear he hadn't even seen when they'd faced Lucifer or the Darkness. Fear that Cas only showed when the two humans closest to him were about to die.

Cas finally spoke, his gaze focusing on Dean's, "The angels are screaming."

"Why?" Dean's mind went a hundred horrible directions. He didn't get time to consider any of the admittedly many horrible options because…

"Dean." Sam's hand clamped down on his shoulder and forcibly whirled him around to look out the front window.

The early morning sky, usually a turning soft lavender or pale blue around this time of day was blood red. And far in the distance a white wave of light was racing across the flat Californian plains.

"What is that?" Dean couldn't comprehend what he was seeing. It didn't make sense. A monster with claws, a man with a shot gun, a black eyed thing he could handle. Whatever this was, it was something new.

The gravity of the event they were witnessing didn't actually hit the trio until a quaint little farm house a few miles away flew apart and disintegrated when the light wave washed over it.

"Jesus Christ!" Sam threw his arms back while the others froze in shock.

Small little figures, a family, fleeing the structure ran down the road towards the impala.

Dean thew the car into gear not thinking, just reacting on his instinct to save people. He didn't even have time to hit the gas as the light swallowed up and destroyed them.

"That family." Sam gulped.

"Drive." Cas growled at Dean in his deep gravelly voice.

Dean whipped the car around and floored it. "There!" Dean saw a rickety barn no less than a mile away, "We get inside and throw up every damn sigil we know." Dean somehow pressed the gas closer to the floor knowing that his car wouldn't be fast enough. In the rearview mirror the light wave was descending fast and its roar was deafening, "Cas, I know you don't have much mojo in those wings but you gotta try something. Get us out of here!"

"There is nowhere to go." Cas shouted, "Reality is being erased."

"Is this God?" Sam gripped the side door handle till it hurt.

"I don't know." Cas began.

A woman in blue appeared out of thin air in front of them, her arms out stretched wide. Dean slammed on the brakes and the car skidded to a stop. A bright light blinded them and they disappeared.

The impala sat alone on the road, idling for a few seconds more. And then Earth 79 was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Fate of Earth-38 hangs in the balance.

Kara could hardly see the screen through her tears. The bright beacon that indicated Argo's position on the outer reaches of Earth's solar system faded away. Blinked out like it was never there. She barely felt her sister's arm's around her or J'onn's hand on her shoulder trying to lend her strength. Suddenly she wasn't in the DEO anymore. She was just a little girl alone in a pod, powerless to do anything while she watched Krypton burn and crack apart. Alex's gentle squeeze on her wrist was all that kept her from drowning in memories, "They're gone." Her voice broke at the end.

Brainy pulled away from the readouts, his face grim, "And we're next."

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

"Panic is rising out there." Alex gripped a wall for support as the ground gave yet another violent rumble. "I want every available agent in the field until we get a handle on whatever this thing is." She strode across the control room, a seemingly steady focal point in the madness that erupted inside the DEO ever since the anti-matter wave was first detected. But under it all Alex was just was scared as everyone else, "Hey." She touched her sister's arm.

Kara felt like a hole had been punched through her chest. Over the years she had gotten back so much of what she'd lost as a child. Her mother, friends from her years growing up on krypton and a beautiful living piece of her home world safe and intact. Argo, a place where her culture could rebuild. Clark, oh Clark, and Lois had been so eager to raise little John on Argo. An in minutes everything had been wiped from existence.

Kara felt Alex's gentle grasp around her, not quite a hug but Kara knew it would only take a small glance from herself and her sister would wrap Kara in her strong arms and she would break. And if she broke, Kara didn't know how she would have the strength in herself to keep going. Looking around at all the agents scrambling for solutions, terrified out of their minds, Kara didn't have that luxury. These people were counting on her. Alex needed her. Her found family was still here on this Earth and, if it was the last thing she did, she would stop that wave from erasing it all. Alex tugged a little harder on her arm. Nodding her head Kara let Alex pull her forward, there was still work to do.

Then the lighting fixtures over head shattered in tandem with the building rocking against it's foundations. Alex and Kara flinched back, Kara instinctually moving in front of Alex as a blinding light filled the control room.

A woman in blue appeared standing in the center of the DEO logo. Agents burst into action, surrounding the stranger on all sides.

Alex smoothly drew her weapon, "Face down on the floor. Now!"

"Did you do this?" Kara stalked forward, her eyes beginning to burn in the first stages of a heat vision blast, "Did you destroy Argo!?"

The woman only calmly upturned her hands and eight pillars of light erupted and faded away to reveal people.

The second Kara saw her cousin and Lois she almost let her guard down, desperate to crush them in a hug if only to reassure herself that they were really there. But the three strangers between Batwoman and Oliver drew weapons. The tallest and the one in a trench coat each held a strangely shaped silver daggers and the third an old revolver aimed right at Alex's head.

Taking a step in front of her sister Kara finally let her laser vision loose, super heating the gun in the blonde's hand. The weapon glowed bright orange and melted into a useless mass. The man dropped it with a pained cry.

Seeing his friend hurt the man in the trench coat flew into action. Faster than a human should have been able to move he was across the room and in front of Kara. He brought down his silver dagger onto her chest.

And the dagger promptly shattered.

He held up the now dull handle in disbelief.

"That's not possible." The tall one whispered, arms around the gunman's wrists to steady him.

"Wanna try that again?" Alex stepped around Kara, leveling her weapon at her sister's would be killer.

The trench-coated man narrowed his eyes at Alex and lifted his hand, palm out. His eyes began to glow not unlike Kara's, and yet Kara didn't think lasers would about to come shooting out. She had a hunch it was something much worse. She tensed, intending to cover Alex with her body and cape.

"Enough!" Oliver stepped up to the two hostile parties, his deep voice practically jolting the tension to a standstill, "No one is going be hurting anyone!"

"Where are we? What's going on?" The gunman stalked up to the woman in blue, cradling his burnt hand to his chest. The taller man kept close behind him, acting as a shadow.

Kara recognized his protective stance as one she'd had for Alex since before she even became Supergirl. To top it all off they clearly resembled each other. Family? Brothers? She wondered.

The woman in blue calmly turned to the men, "I am Harbinger and you are on Earth 38…" A black gloved fist collided with her face, stunning everyone else into motionlessness.

Harbinger's face snapped to the side and then back. Unfazed she raised an eyebrow at Batwoman.

"That Rabbit was about to talk!" Batwoman roared.

The man in the trench coat tilted his head to the side, confused but still wary of the strangers around him, "You speak with rabbits? I did not know they had the capability of speech." He squinted his eyes at Harbinger.

Brainy steeped his hands, "Yes. Yes. After this Crisis I must find these rabbits you speak of."

Alex waved the android away, "Not now Brainy," At the same time the injured man rolled his eyes and muttered "Cas" under his breath,

"We are all on the same side here." Harbinger stated calmy.

"How are we supposed to know that, huh? I don't know you." The man all but got in her face, towering over her.

"Chuck sent me for you." Harbinger spoke.

Kara side eyed Alex, "Chuck?" she mouthed.

However diminutive them name sounded the three men recognized the name and instantly stood down their defensive postures.

"Why?" The tall one asked, gulping deeply.

"Because the multiverse is in danger," Harbinger placed her hands behind her back, standing tall and leveling the three with her clear gaze, "Because you are needed."

"Ok then," the tall one slid his dagger into his jacket, "Hello I'm Sam Winchester, this is my brother Dean. And this is…" he gestured to the man in the trench coat who'd come to hover particularly close to Dean's side.

"My name is Castiel."

"What are you?" Kara asked, not forgetting the man's speed and strength, "You're clearly not human. An alien?"

Dean snorted derisively and glared at Kara. Something shifted in his gaze when his eyes traveled down to the symbol on her chest. It would have been comical how his eyes bugged out of his head if not for the present danger racing towards them all. Dean started lightly slapping on his brother's arm and Sam slapped his hand away, not wanting to be distracted.

Oblivious to all this Castiel squared his shoulders and addressed the woman as one warrior did to another, "I am an angel of the lord."

To say that people's jaws dropped would have been an understatement.

"Angels?" Kara gulped, "There's no such thing."

"I would've said the same about laser eyeballs" Dean threw up his hands in Kara's direction, "but here we go."

"Who are you?" Kara asked crossing her arms. "Why are they here?"

"We're hunters sweetheart." Dean smirked.

"And you hunt what? Deer?" Alex scoffed at him, not quite ready to forgive how they'd tried to stab her sister just yet.

"Monsters, demons."

Kara was again about to dismiss all this, her earth was hanging in the balance. Then she saw the look on Oliver's face. Not an ounce of surprise.

Oliver clenched his jaw, "So you're the Constantine's of your Earth?"

"I fail to see how the ancient city pertains to anything of import," Cas again squinted, and Kara wondered if he needed glasses or something.

"That's not what I meant," Oliver began only to be cut off by Harbinger.

"The point is they have saved their earth just as many times as you all have saved yours. The Monitor wants to make the stand on this Earth as strong as possible. Everyone in this room are the greatest heroes and champions from across all realities."

Dean shifted, clearly uncomfortable being called such and renewed his efforts to get his brother's attention.

"What?!" Sam finally snapped before catching onto what Dean had noticed, "No way." He breathed and took in everyone around him. One by one he cataloged their costumes, or more properly their battle armor. Whenever John scrounged up enough money for a comic Sam always bought the same hero, and now that hero was standing right beside him in his red cape and blue suit.

"Yeah man that's Superman." Dean couldn't help but puff his chest out when the hero looked his way.

"Are they friends of yours?" Cas asked.

"No they're comic book heroes."

"I don't understand."

Harbinger explained, "In your universe the stories of these people are inspired by the real people you see before you. Much the same way you yourselves inspired many books in your own reality if I recall correctly."

"How many times is that gonna come up?" Dean groaned quietly to himself, or at least he thought he'd been quiet. Kara and Clark looked at him funny and Dean realized, of course, super hearing.

Kara squinted at the trio, shaking herself after a moment, "That wouldn't even hit the top ten strangest things I've seen."

"And if we are going to be working to together," Batwoman slid off her cowl, "I guess you should all just call me Kate."

"Yeah that makes a lot of sense." Oliver mentally kicked himself over not putting it together sooner.

"I'm…" Superman began.

"Clark Kent." Dean proudly blurted out, and at seeing the heroes tense his grin faded and he muttered, "Sorry comics."

"Kara Zor-el. Right?" Sam approached Kara, hand outwards to shake.

"Nerd." Dean elbowed his brother in the ribs.

"Jerk." Sam side stepped him and again help his hand out.

Kara shook his hand. She didn't know what shocked her more, that this stranger from another world used her real name, or that he was being so kind after she'd pretty much attacked his brother, "Yes. And I'm sorry by the way." At his confusion, "For blasting your brother. Um. Mr. Winchester" She addressed the other hunter. "we can have our med bay take a look at your hand."

"It's Dean. And it's fine. Probably would have done the same thing." Dean waved off her apology.

"Dean you can't shoot lasers out of your eyes." Cas admonished the hunter.

"How do you know I can't?" Dean scoffed.

"Dean," Cas narrowed his eyes at the hunter before holding two fingers to his forehead, "Allow me." The burns on Dean's hand disappeared.

"Wow that's handy." Kara stared wide eyed.

The young blonde woman at Oliver's side who had stayed silent this whole time awkwardly raised her hand in greeting, "Uh, hi I'm Mia. Oliver's daughter."

J'onn raised his eyebrow at the archer, "I never knew Oliver had a daughter."

Mia smirked, "Yeah he gets that a lot."

Kate cleared her throat, "As fascinating as all this is aren't there more pressing issues right now?"

"Yes I agree." Alex agreed, "You said the multiverse was in trouble." Pointing her finger at Harbinger.

"Do you have a place we can talk?" Harbinger glanced around the very busy and crowded control room.

"Yes, this way," Alex led her up a flight of stairs, while the rest hung back.

Now that she was finally able to Kara all but tackled her cousin in a hug and then Lois, of course with much more control over her strength than she'd used with her cousin and pulled them aside, "Thank Rao you're ok!"

Clark pulled Kara closer that their previous hug, if possible, and kissed the top of her head before stepping back, "Harbinger appeared just in time. We had to send Johnathan away in a pod set for Earth." Clarks face seemed to crumble.

Lois slipped her hand into her husbands, "We don't know where it landed, or even if it did."

"Brainy can you." Kara turned to her genius friend.

"Of course," He nodded, "We'll find that bouncing bundle of Kryptonain joy." Clutching his tablet close to his chest he bounded away towards his lab set up.

Hopeful once more Kara asked the question she'd been dying to ask, "Did anyone else make it off Argo?" At Clark's dark expression Kara felt her heart cracking all over again, "My mother?" her voice small.

Clark could only shake his head. The tears that Kara had somehow restrained up till now spilled over and Clarks arms were around her again, only this time holding her up. She pressed her face into the crock of his neck.

Sam's heart went out to the Kryptonian, knowing all too well what it was like to lose parents. He also still didn't know what had happened to his own Earth yet. If that light they saw before being whisked away was anything to go by, nothing good.

Kara brushed her face dry and pulled free of Clark, now wasn't the time to lose herself.

"Kara."

"I can't not right now."

"Ok."

Alex appeared at the top of the staircase and waved them up, "Everybody if you'll come this way."

The heroes sat around a table in the DEO"s briefing room with Cas between Lois and Kara while the two Winchester's leaned against the wall in the back. Oliver had to ignore all his training that screamed that these hunters were a threat.

Harbinger stood in front of the main screen which played out in real time the destructive force tearing through space. "There's a wave of antimatter sweeping across this universe...destroying everything in its path.

Oliver crossed his arms on the table and leaned forward, "I've seen the antimatter wave in action." In fact he still had nightmares about it, "It wiped all of Earth-2 right out of existence."

"Harry Wells?" Kara gasped.

Oliver just shook his head.

"And what about our Earth?" Dean asked, pushing himself off the wall.

Harbinger waved at the screen and another a graphic of Earth appeared, "Earth 79 was destroyed by the anti-matter wave thirty minutes ago, right before the wave entered this universe and destroyed Argo."

Dean stared blankly, bile rising in his throat. All glee at seeing his childhood heroes bled out. Everyone they'd ever saved, everyone they'd ever loved was gone. The graphic of Earth 79 disintegrated and faded away, the screen reading 'SIGNAL LOST'.

Sammy ran a hand over his face. He'd just gotten his mother back and now… he shut his eyes tight, not wanting or able to go there yet.

Cas looked like he was about to throw up. The angel wasn't even sure if he could be physically sick. All those years ago he rebelled against heaven, forging a path for himself with his new-found free will and this is what it came too. In all his worst nightmares from a war of angels and demons, to a planet overrun by leviathans this outcome never even crossed his mind. There would have always been something left, something or someone to fight for. But it was all just gone.

Dean's anger bubbled over, "Why didn't you do anything to save our world? Why did you let them all die?" the words flew out of his mouth like daggers towards Harbinger.

In the face of the hunter's anger Harbinger did not flinch, not an easy feat. Calmly she spoke, knowing every moment counted. "The antimatter wave is burning through reality at the speed of light. By the time I arrived the wave had already consumed half of your planet." Harbinger said with sympathy. Then turning she addressed all the heroes, "This threat is bigger than any one universe, any one earth. I've brought you all to Earth-38 because this is where the Monitor wants you to make your stand. This universe is the tipping point. If we don't stop the antimatter wave here, it will continue to the next universe, and the next and the next...until it has obliterated not only every Earth, but everything...across all reality."

Perhaps the only one in the room who utterly understood that that meant was Cas, having been created nearly all the way at the beginning. He remembered the edges of the universe as existence spread outwards. He remembered the darkness, the hollow dread that emptiness filled him with even as a young seraph. As each universe becomes consumed that empty will rush inwards again, clawing to have its rightful place back. Cas shivered, the Winchester brothers noticing his unease. Dean placed a hand on his shoulder and Cas nodded at him.

"All right." Oliver snapped, the stress getting to him. Even after months of preparation he didn't feel ready in the slightest, "So we are going to need a bigger team. Where's Barry? Where are the Legends?"

"Doing reconnaissance. I'm headed to check on them now." Harbinger answered and turned her palms upwards. Light radiated from her chest and she was gone.

Kate clenched her fist and leaned towards Kara, "I...still don't like her."

"You and me both sister," Dean grunted and rejoined his brother on the far side of the room.

"I need to call the president." Alex headed to the door, "There needs to be a contingency plan in place. Until then Brainy's algorithm will help forecast exactly how much time we have until the antimatter wave hits." Alex sucked in a huge breath, steeling herself.

She didn't make it two steps towards the door. The glass surrounding the briefing room cracked and the floor rumbled before lurching underfoot, sending anyone not sitting to the ground.

A piece of ceiling came loose right above Lois. Before either of the Supers had a chance to react Cas was on his feet, leaning over the human and catching the brunt of the concrete's impact on his back.

"Cas" Dean yelled at the same time as Clark shouted, "Lois."

Cas grunted and stood up straight, hefting the piece of debris to the floor with an ease the bellied the angel's strength.

"I'm alright." Lois said shakily.

After checking over his wife Clark turned towards the angel and nodded, "Thank you."

"Of course." Cas straightened his coat while Dean brushed dust off the angel's shoulders, something Cas would have informed him as unnecessary. About to tell him as much the angel's protest died in his throat at the look on his human's face. While Cas had been in no real danger, today's events were traumatic enough that Dean just needed reassurance that one of the few things left of his old life was still there. So Cas let Dean have this.

Distracted as they were no one had noticed what had transpired outside until Mia spoke up, "Ah, what are we going to do about this new problem?" She stared wide eyed at the brown and gold gargantuan spire that had been the cause of the earthquake as it erupted from the ground. It shoved its way upwards, cracking the ground apart.

The heroes and hunters ran to the edge of the walkway to observe this new development.

"What are we supposed to do about this?" Mia shouted over the din.

Kara glared at the tower. Now this was something she could punch, "I'll handle it." She growled out and everyone took a cautious step back as she began to hover in the air.

Four beams of light sprang into being on the lower level. It was Harbinger with The Flash, Sara Lance and Ray Palmer.

"Wait!" Barry shouted upwards, "The tower isn't a threat."

Kara's feet touched back down at the sight of her friend.

Dean still wasn't convinced, "How do you know?" His hand straying to his hip where his gun usually would be.

Barry tilted his head, taking in the three strangers standing between Kara and Oliver.

Ray was the one who answered, "It's a quantum tower, apparently." As if that cleared it all up, which for half the people in the room Ray may as well have been speaking Greek.

"Meaning." Dean asked exasperated. Sammy just nodded beside him, of course his brainy brother understood what was going on.

Harbinger broke it down for everyone, "Meaning it's the only thing that can save the people of this world."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Battle begins and a hero will fall.

The team gathered around the central table in the control room. On the main display screen spread out across the table top they all could watch real time readouts of the antimatter wave hurtling through space toward Earth 38. The only good news was that the sky had returned to its normal blue hue.

Harbinger bought up schematics of the tower while she explained, “At the dawn of time, the Monitor placed quantum towers on key Earths as a last line of defense. The red skies are dissipating, which means it's working.”

“Yes yes!” Brainy zoomed in on the power panels near the top of the main spire, “From this design, it looks like the tower is capable of generating a quantum flux field, which can, theoretically reverse the exogenic state of the anti-matter wave, thereby dissipating the anti-matter energy.”

Dean shut his eyes tight and shook his head, “Anyone else get a headache from that.”

Ray jumped, snapping his fingers excitedly. “Finally, someone who speaks my language.”

“Is that what that was?” Dean leaned toward Cas.

“Yes, I believe that was the language you humans call English.” Cas replied deadpan, to which Dean only rolled his eyes. Cas ignored him addressed Brainy and Harbinger, “This tower is able to prevent the destruction of this Earth? Yes?”

“If you can protect it.” Harbinger was grim.

“Protect it from what?” Sam glanced quickly out the huge windows, half expecting to see… well he did know what to expect but it couldn’t be good, “What’s coming?”

“The Anti-Monitor. He commands forces greater than any army. When the tower stops the wave, they will come to thwart any effort to save this planet and its people.”

“Sprock!” Brainy’s sudden shout made everyone jump and whip their heads in his direction.

He delivered the news that Superman’s son had been sucked into the future on a parallel Earth. Sara and Lois left with Brainy to find the child while Oliver managed to convince Clark to stay behind and guard the tower.

Sam and Dean hung back, feeling far too out of sorts for their comfort level. Suddenly overwhelmed and needing air Sam grabbed his brother’s arm and nodded towards the open-air balcony over-looking the city.

“Call us when you need us to shoot something.” Dean grumbled, “Cas.” He jerked his head towards the balcony and Cas followed.

Kara swallowed a sick feeling building in her gut. There was a distinct line between the two teams. The heroes and the hunters. Those who knew each other and those who were unknowns.

If they were ever going to have a chance at surviving this someone needed to bridge that gap. Setting her resolve she cautiously approached the trio.

“Hello,” She greeted, stepping up behind where they were leaning on the railing, “Castiel.” The angel turned her way, “Thank you for protecting my cousin’s wife back there.”

“Of course. My brothers may have forgotten our mission but I haven’t.” Cas bowed his head.

“What was your mission?” Kara wondered aloud.

“To protect humanity.” Cas replied.

Dean’s face darkened, wanting to be done with this conversation and he faced away from her, looking out over the city.

Uncomfortable now, Kara clasped her hands together and slowly eased further out onto the balcony. The warm open air was a fresh respite from the stifling room briefing room. “With everything that’s happened I bet no one had had a chance to check on you. You know, see how you are doing.”

“We’re just fine thanks.” Dean all but snapped at the Kryptonian.

“Dean.” Sam warned.

“No it’s ok,” Kara held her hand up, “I get it. I really do. You just lost everything you’ve ever known and now you’re on a strange Earth with strange people who are asking for your help. That would be a lot, for anyone. And it’s ok to not be ok.”

“Well speaking for myself I’d say I’m just fine.” But the hunch in Dean shoulder’s gave away his true feelings.

“Well… I know I’m not fine.” Kara leaned against the railing next to the brothers and angel, “When I was twelve, I watched as my home world was destroyed and there was nothing I could do.”

Sam chewed the inside on his mouth, eyes dropping to the floor, “I’m sorry.”

Kara’s expression softened, “Thank you,” she smiled kindly at the hunter, “But that’s not why I’m telling you this.” With a deep breath she steeled herself, “What I mean to say is I understand what you’re going through. For so long I thought about what I could have done, who I could have saved if I had my powers back then. But the truth is there was nothing I could have done. Just as there was nothing that you could have done differently to change what happened on Earth 79. If Harbinger hadn’t taken you away when she did you all would have died too. Just as I would have died if my mother,” the air caught in her throat and Kara choked. Sam placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Her face pinched in pain, Kara brushed her cheeks dry, “If my mother hadn’t sent me away I would have died to. There is nothing we could have done then. But here, now. These people on this Earth” She waved at the bustling city below, “and every Earth on the antimatter wave’s trajectory, we can still save them. That’s why you’re here, that’s why I survived Krypton’s destruction all those years ago. So that we could be here now to make a difference. I have to believe that.”

“How are you so hopeful?” Sam looked at the kryptonian in a new light, “You’ve lost almost as much as we have today.”

Kara sighed and gazed out over the city she loved and protected, “Before my cousin and I came here no one had ever heard of Krypton. Now there’s,” a morose laugh bubbled in her chest, “Now there’s songs and celebrations and museums. Children all over the world are learning about my home in school. Krypton isn’t just a place it’s a spirit. And as long as we have hope,” she looked each brother and Castiel in the eyes, “As long as we hold on to the spirit of our homes, they will never die.”

“We’ve been fighting so long,” Dean ran a palm over his face, “Its so easy to forget why.”

“And now we have to keep fighting for what and who we have left,” Cas stared intently at Dean, it was one of his looks that Dean would have under normal circumstances reminded the angel of human social cues. Now they just took comfort that the other was even there, awkward interactions and all.

Sam took in their staring contest and smirked half-heartedly. Kara glanced at him questioning. Sam cleared his throat, knowing his brother and Cas could do this for hours if left alone.

“I know you didn’t choose to be here,” Kara told them fondly, “but thank you.”

“Out of everyone that could have been saved from our world, it was us.” Sam fiddled with a loose string at the end of his sleeve, “I hope we were worth it.”

“I’m sure you are.” Kara smiled up at him.

“Hey.” Alex said walking up the stairs to join them, “I just got off the phone with the president. She’s on board. Jon and Dreamer are coordinating evac using all the alien ships we can pull together.”

“Alien spaceships,” Dean whispered to himself, “This is not how I thought this day was gonna go.”

“I want to help with the evacuation. Count me in.” Sam blurted. Off Dean’s look, “This is something I have to do.” Then to Alex, “But where can you even send them?”

Cas agreed, “It’s not just the Earths that are being erased, reality itself is disintegrating. You can’t just fly into space.”

“Brainy calculated that Earth 1, Oliver’s Earth, is the last Earth on the wave’s trajectory.” Alex gestured for the four to follow her back into the briefing room, “Team One is going to send as many ships through in the time we have while Team Two defends the Quantum Tower.”

“You can make a rift that large?” Cas squinted at Alex in disbelieve, “Even arc-angels would struggle accomplish such a feat.”

Alex smirked, “We’ll you’ve never met Lena Luthor.”

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Ray scanned the tower as Team Two approached it’s base, “Whatever is inside there, it's working. The anti-matter wave has stopped and it's slowly dissipating. How do we protect that thing from an enemy we know nothing about?”

Dean cocked the handgun Alex had managed to get as a replacement for the one Kara melted. It didn’t quite feel right in his hand, but it would do, “At least we had warning it’s coming.”

Cas readied the angel blade Sam had given him. He wondered to himself, glancing over at the young woman who shattered his original blade without lifting a finger. Would the angelic weapon be of any use in the coming battle? Would he?

The ground rumbled as Oliver took point, “We head inside stake out strategic positions. If we're fortified, we control the battle.”

The ground lurched violently underfoot sending most to the ground.

“An Earthquake that magnitude could overwhelm the entire coast.” Ray worried, he pulled up a holographic display of the US and red quake epicenters spread out all along the western side of the country.

“Kara, Clark, Barry, Help contain the damage.” Oliver ordered and they took off, then to his new allies, “Castiel.”

“Yes Oliver?” Cas asked.

“I’m assuming being an angel entails more than just a harp.”

Cas rolled his eyes, another human expression he just couldn’t seem to stop emulating, “I don’t have harp.”

Oliver hefted his bow and readied an arrow, “I mean what kind of fire power do you have.”

“I am a seraph, a cast of warrior angels. I was once the head of heaven’s garrison. I have a lot of what you would call ‘fire power’.” Cas answered, air quotes an all.

“Good, then you’re here with the rest of us. We need at least one of our heavy hitters here on the ground. Let's go inside and dig in.”

Dean paused while the others strode on ahead. He watched the back of his closest companion as the angel walked into the tower with purpose. It was jarring to hear Cas referred to as a heavy hitter alongside the likes of Supergirl and the Flash. Somehow in the last few years he’d forgotten that this unassuming shell of man was not really who Cas was. Cas, no Castiel. Castiel was an ancient and powerful comic wavelength that had for some reason chosen to fight along side him and his Sam. Dean vowed to make sure the angel knew how much that meant to him, if they managed to live through the next twenty minutes.

“Where’s this army?” Dean watched the upper levels of the tower’s interior for hostiles and took up flank while Oliver took the point.

“It’s on it’s way.” Oliver picked his way across the rubble, as always mindful of his surroundings. After all Ra’s A’l Ghul taught him many valuable lessons. Every dark corners held the potential to hide any number of creatures. He tiled his head towards his daughter, not breaking his concentration, “Remember, Mia, whatever happens find your mother. Tell her how much I love her.” His voice was deep and full of regret.

The noise started out a barely audible groan. One dark shape flew past the upper level windows unnoticed. Then another. And another. The groans became wailing and the team took several steps back. Outside more and more flying creatures collected until all daylight was blocked out.

Only Cas knew precisely what they were dealing with, having seen these twisted and malformed faces every time he looked at Meg or Crowley, and for a short time; he shuddered at the memory; Dean. These were the true form of demons. Normally outside of vessels demons couldn’t cause harm to the physical plane. He doubted that would be the case in this fight.

Cas twirled his angel blade around and readied himself.

“Cas?” Dean asked.

“Vesseless demons.” Cas said in disgust.

“Ah hell.” Dean holstered his gun and pulled out Sam’s demon killing knife.

Mia tittered on her feet, overwhelmed, “Okay. When Lyla said an army, I thought she meant an army.” She strung a bow an aimed at the oncoming armada.

“She did. It's just that we've never faced one like this before.” Oliver took up position beside his daughter.

“We have.” Dean grumbled.

“One army. She said, ‘one army.’ It's more like ten!” Mia grit her teeth and readied her bow.

“The Anti-Monitor must have emptied all the circles of Hell.” Cas came up next to Mia with Dean at his side.

Batwoman and Ray were the last to move into formation on either end of the group. This world’s last defense.

“Here they come!” Dean shouted over the unearthly screeches.

“Hold the line!” Oliver ordered and the demons poured in.

Mia and Oliver let their arrows loose which shot through several demons. Upon contact the dark spirits flew apart in a cloud of dark ash.

The air filled with arrows, lasers and bataragnes. One demon was about to get the drop on Ray when a serrated knife pieced its chest, orange light flickered behind its eyes and it exploded revealing Dean wielding the blade.

“Thanks man.” Ray eyed the knife with fascination, “Say when this is all over think I could take a look at that?”

“You know, there’s not usually this much talking in a fight.” Dean gutted another monster.

“Oh sorry, I tend to talk when I’m nervous. And well you know with the worlds ending and all I’m pretty nervous.” Ray suddenly blasted a demon that Dean had failed to notice creeping up behind him.

“Thanks.” Dean grunted his thanks.

“You got it.”

“Hey Robin Hood,” Dean threw his knife, hitting one right in the face in front of Oliver, “Your friend always this chipper.”

“Yeah.” Oliver shot an arrow over Dean’s shoulder, “And don’t call me Robin Hood.”

“Well my other name for you isn’t so polite.” Dean dodged a flying hostile and when he came up he and Oliver were back to back.

“Do I wanna know?” Oliver went high with his arrows while Dean went low.

“Not likely.” Cas jumped down beside the two and threw his blade end over tip right into the chest of the demon about to land a killing blow on Mia who was kneeling on the ground after being knocked over.

As that demon burst into ash Mia used the cover to twirl around and lift her weapon, shooting her arrow at two unsuspecting demons. They were taken out before the ash cleared to reveal Mia with another arrow readied that she released, killing a demon grappling with Cas.

“Impressive.” Cas complemented her.

“I learned from the best.” Mia tilted her head at her father warmly.

Cas watched Oliver and Mia and he felt a twinge in his chest for another young woman with blonde hair. His vessel’s daughter had been on him mind often since the start of the crisis and, although not his own child, he wished more than anything he could have saved her.

The demons kept on coming. They swooped down in what appeared to be kamikaze runs, knocking into the heroes and even snatching Ray up before dropping him heavily to the ground. If not for Ray’s Atom suit his bones would have been pulverized.

“Take cover!” Oliver yelled.

Dean, Cas and Kate all fell behind a large hunk of rusted metal.

“They're trying to breach the tower.” Mia shouted from where she and Oliver were crouched.

“Well, we can't let that happen!” Oliver let another arrow loose.

Ray lay stunned on the ground, with Cas pulling him the rest of the way behind their metal hideout.

“Thanks buddy.” Ray beamed at the angel.

“You’re… thank you.” Cas’s reply was off kilter, unused to hearing anyone but the Winchesters speak so friendly towards him.

“I'll take that upgrade now,” Kate said to Ray.

“Oh, uh, if I can have one of those without losing an appendage.” Ray reached for a Batarang which Kate all but tossed in his face. “Oh, so cool!” Ray’s face lit up like a kid on Christmas. He turned the little silver bat over and over in his hands, “Incredibly balanced. Carbon fiber?”

“Ray!” Dean growled at the hero that was far too chipper for Dean’s tastes.

“Sorry, focusing.” Placing the batarang atop his forearms displays Ray pressed numbers too fast for Dean to make out, “Now, if we can just charge your batarang with my compressed light energy. Incoming!” Ray shouted and Kate grabbed the batarang.

With a running leap Kate flipped over the metal hideout, narrowly dodging a demon’s claws and threw the now glowing weapon. It cut across the air with a zing, exploding several demons in the process before arching back into Kate’s open hand. “I like it,” She told the scientist over her shoulder.

Relief was short lived. More demons spilled into the foyer, and even more swirled around the windows, just outside. One new and improved batarang wouldn’t be enough to deal with this.

Cas rose from his and Dean’s cover and held up one of his hands, “Shut your eyes.” He ordered, eyes glowing bright blue as a light erupted out of his palm.

Dean threw an arm over his face while the other’s turned away. They couldn’t see, but they could hear the screams of the demons and a sizzling sound.

Once the light died away they lowered their hands and saw, stunned, that not a single demon remained within the tower’s interior.

“Why didn’t you do that before?” Kate grumbled.

Cas narrowed his eyes at her.

“Not bad.” Oliver clapped him on the shoulder, growing concerned when the angel stumbled, and Dean had to steady him. But he didn’t have time to dwell on it long, “This isn’t over.” The next wave of shadow demons had arrived.

Too quickly they were becoming overwhelmed. One demon flew straight into Oliver’s chest, knocking him to the ground.

“Dad!” Mia ran to his aid.

Another plowed right into Dean, disarming him of his knife and in the same motion knocked Cas off his feet.

A red blur zipped into the building and the incoming wave was exploded by the yellow lightning. Kara and Clark landed near bye with a loud thud. Kara blasting back the demon about to grab Cas with her heat vision.

“Looks like you could use some help.” Barry skidded to a stop and helped Dean off the ground with a grin.

“Thanks Sparky.” Dean brushed himself off.

“You got it.” Barry let go of the man’s arm and faced forward, “There’s more of those things incoming.”

“Of course there are.” The hunter groaned.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

In the city around the tower people looked to the skies in fear. Would they turn red again? People grouped together, most stayed with their co-workers as the crisis had hit right in the middle of the work day. Sam threaded through the throng of citizens, trying to keep some sense of order to the evacuation.

An Emergency News Bulletin flashed over every screen and phone in National City. Sam stopped and looked upwards, like everyone else in the streets, and he saw a young woman in a mask addressing the masses. “There's no need for panic. Supergirl and Superman are working hard to save this planet. Soon, alien ships will begin circling the globe, picking people up and taking you to safety.”

“J’onn said you’d be coming.” A voice jolted Sam back into action.

Sam saw the same hero from the news cast approaching him.

“Hi I’m Sam Winchester.” He held his hand out to the young woman.

“Dreamer,” she shook his hand.

“Alright so we just cleared out the DEO.” Sam pointed his thumb at the building behind him, “Agents are being dispatched to schools and hospitals.”

“That’s good,” Dreamer lead Sam over to a railing that looked out over the vast central park area where hundreds, if not thousands of citizens were bunching together.

And not just there. Parking lots outside of shops and offices filled with their employees while school yards filled with children. And buzzing in the air around the city like huge insects were hundreds of ships, none looking quite like the other. Each clearly built by a different race and culture and all heeding the call to unite to save the planet’s inhabitants.

Dreamer set her hands on her hips while surveying the work they had to do, “What we need to do is keep people calm. Brainy said that these earthquakes are going to get bigger and bigger the closer the wave gets to Earth.”

“That means debris,” Sam eyed that huge skyscrapers all around them, “As people make their way outside we should direct them as far as possible from these buildings.”

“I agree.” Dreamer nodded as they guided a group of disoriented café goers into a group waiting to be picked up, “Do you know if Alex was able to get Lena Luthor on board.”

“Last I heard Alex as working with her to build the portal to Earth 1.” Sam glanced around. The city had quite literally emptied itself into the streets. It was one thing to talk about evacuating the city, it was another to be right in the thick of it. Sam tried to keep the despair and doom growing in his gut from taking over, “There’s so many, how are we going to get enough ships for everyone.”

“That's why Brainy left J'onn his keys.” Dreamer smiled knowingly at Sam.

Sam frowned, “Keys to what?”

Suddenly the sun was blocked out and Sam whirled his head skywards, “Woah!”

A ship, all smooth lines and sleek white metal the size of several of the city’s biggest skyscrapers hovered and came to a stop overhead. 

Dreamer pressed the com in her ear, “Right on time, J'onn. Are you ready to get this evacuation underway?”

Sam was glad Alex had made sure he had a com as well, so he was able to hear the Martian’s response.

“I’ll start beaming up the groups you’ve already got gathered. Let's just hope Alex and Lena get that portal on in time so we have somewhere to go.” J’onn’s deep voice echoed the fear in both their hearts.

“Alright,” Dreamer turned around and waved at the crowd, “Everybody this way. Let’s get into the ship.”

“Stay together!” Sam ushered a family forward, helping right an old grandpa as he stumbled.

The first group disappeared in a flash of light. All across the park, down every street and atop every building that same thing was happening. Sam couldn’t help the moment of real awe, people were actually being beamed up into spaceships! “Its like something out of Star Trek.” He grinned, then at Dreamer’s expression, “Please tell me that’s a thing here to.”

“Live long a prosper my friend.” Dreamer grinned right back, and they moved onto help the next group.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Barry knocked out most of the next wave with his speed punches and zapped to a stop beside Dean, “Is that it?”

“Like that was easy?” Dean leaned over with a huff. Man, he was not as young as he used to be.

Alex’s voice came over their comms accompanied with the skies outside growing dark and returning to the menacing red hue from before, “They're on the roof.”

“What's happening out there?” Oliver asked as the everything grew dark.

“The skies are red again, the anti-matter wave's moving, and the portal isn't open yet. And there's more shadow demons incoming.” Alex’s answered, “We need to get that tower powered up again.”

“Kara, Clark” Ray pulled up a holographic schematic of the tower, “your laser vision should be a compatible source to jump start the tower’s systems. Castiel?”

“Yes,” Cas stepped forward.

“Can you do what you did before when you blew away the demons, but direct it into the tower’s power cells?” Ray held his palm out in an imitation of how Cas had smote the creatures.

Cas still felt hopelessly drained after that last blast but nodded none the less, “I can try.” He tried to ignore Dean’s glowering gaze that he felt burning into the back of his head. Only Dean really knew how weak he was currently. But at this point Dean should have accepted Cas’s self sacrificing habits. After all his Father knows how often he sacrificed himself for the Winchester’s.

“Kara, Clark, Castiel get to the roof.” Oliver snapped out the order while notching another arrow, “Get the tower operational again. We'll stay behind and hold them off.”

“I require your assistance,” Cas said to Kara.

Kara nodded, “Hold on tight.” She wrapped an arm around Cas’s waist and shot skyward like a bullet with Clark following close behind.

Once high in the air Cas turned a little green around the edges.

“You ok?” Kara shouted over the roaring wind.

“Just a little disorienting to be so high without my wings.”

Huh? He had wings, but not anymore? Kara knew there was a story there and if they lived through this crisis, she decided to ask him. But for now… “We can do this.” She reassured him and then pointed at several slabs of metal circling the top of the tower, “Look! Those have to be the panels.”

“We won't be able to power it definitely.” Clark warned.

“We just need to buy more time.” Kara told the two, “We might lose the planet, but we can still save the people.”

“Here.” Clark held out his arm and helped balance the angel between them.

Secured in his position Cas held out the palm of his hand. In tandem their eyes began to glow. Twin bolts of heat and light shot from Kara and Clark’s eyes while a single beam of pure grace shot from Cas’s palm.

Within moments the three began to tremble with the exertion. The red skies began to fade. They only needed to hold on a little longer.

Clark gave a shout, his eyes falling shut and dropping like a stone tossed into water. The loss of support around Cas had Kara scrambling to grab onto the angel. She held one arm tight around his back and the other hand kept a tight grip on his arm while the two gave their everything.

Cas was the next to give out. He slumped forward, now dead weight in Kara’s arms. Cas hadn’t felt this human in years.

And then at last with a cry of defiance Kara’s lasers died out and they both fell. Kara was unconscious. As they dropped Cas idly mused that as drained as he was now a fall from this height would most probably kill him.

Without a second to spare Kara came to and twisted them mid fall right before plowing into the concrete street. The ground lurched with the impact and debris flew high into the air.

“Cas!” Dean coughed, waving away the dust and running to the edge of the crater. His heart was his throat and this stomach doing somersaults. Was this it then? Was this how Cas finally went?

The dust cleared and there was Cas and Kara, stunned but very much alive. Kara had hit the ground first, using her body to shield the angel from the worst of the collision.

Dean helped Cas to his feet and before the angel could get his bearing the hunter crushed him in a hug, “Don’t do that again ever. And you,” He shouted at Kara over Cas’s shoulder. She blanched, thinking she was about to be scolded, “Thank you.” Dean blurted out, staying her fears and she nodded at Dean who returned the gesture and pulled Cas closer.

Cas grunted in discomfort and Dean pulled away, “Cas?”

“I’m just a little weak, that’s all.” Cas brushed away his concern. But Dean doubted him, no matter how hard Dean hugged him, there was no way he should have ever been strong enough to cause the angel discomfort. Not unless he was far more human than angel now. Dean didn’t have much more time to wonder as the rest of the team made it to their position.

“Did it work?” Cas grunted in pain.

Ray pulled up the hologram of the tower, “You did it. The tower is working again, and the portal is open. Uh, but the ships better be fast.” The display of the antimatter wave was getting closer, “The Kryptonian-Angel charge didn't actually stop the wave, it just slowed it down. According to Brainy's algorithm, we have 14 minutes before it makes contact with Earth.”

“Well,” Kara fixed each member of the team with her gaze, this might very well be the last time they were all together, “then we better make every minute count.”

“We've got your back.” Dean assured her.

Oliver pulled back his bow string and aimed, “Don’t stop fighting until every last ship gets through.”

The high-pitched wail of the creatures was getting closer and closer.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Down in the city the earthquakes had split apart the streets. People dove and raced for cover while huge chucks of concrete and glass rained from the sky.

A particularly big hunk raced downwards right at Sam and the group he was directing.

Sam froze, bracing for the painful impact. Spirals of blue light collided with the debris which pulverized it into harmless pebbles that hardly hurt when they hit his head.

Shocked, Sam looked to the origin of the light spirals.

Dreamer was leaning forward with her arms outstretched, brow creased in concentration. With a huff she straightened, “You’re welcome.” She smiled.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Lena and Alex had joined the fray. Not many ships were left and there were still too many people to get one them. To top it all off time was running out. Sam made sure Lena, Alex and Dreamer had all made it onto ships before he made his way to the last ship that had landed in the central park.

“All right, get inside!” Sam ushered a group into the ship’s cargo hold. As he brought up the last family with him the ship’s captain, a man with yellow skin, stopped Sam.

“I only have room for three more.”

Sam looked at the young parents and their preteen daughter.

“I’ll stay,” The father pushed Sam towards the ship’s ramp.

“No! Go.” Sam hauled the man forward.

The father didn’t have time to protest as the ships hatch shut tight and it shot skyward. Sam was left standing alone in the deserted city.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

With each earthquake the tower crumbled more and more. There was no saving Earth 38 now.

The Monitor staggered out of a blue rimmed portal “The battle is lost!” His voice had a double reverb that became more pronounced as he winced in pain, “We must retreat and save our resources for battles yet to come.” He reached out, opening portals that that sucked away Kate and Ray.

Kara and Clark fought back-to-back. Clark shot his lasers high into the air while Kara blew her ice breath at the incoming demons. With a flick of the wrist the Monitor whisked them away.

Far away in the center of the city Sam was content in his decision as he watched the ships race skyward. Death was a certainty for him, but that man would be able to live another day with his family. Saving people was the family business. He always figured he’d go out like this. The sky above lit up bright with the oncoming wave and the suddenly he was no longer on Earth 38. The Monitor transported him away.

Back on the battlefield Barry raced to a stop. No. No. This was happening all too fast for the fastest man alive.

Mia disappeared into a portal beside him. While the Green Arrow kept battling the creatures. “Oliver!” Barry cried reaching for his friend. He didn’t make it a step forward before he was gone too.

All that were left were Oliver, Dean and Cas. They closed ranks. Oliver knelt, dealing out arrows while the hunter and angel cut and stabbed.

Dean saw the Monitor reaching for them, “Don’t even think about it.” He warned. 

“It is time!”

Oliver whirled in rage at the cosmic being, “Has the planet been evacuated yet?”

The Monitor’s lips pulled into a tight line, “Not entirely.”

Oliver shook his head, “Then it's not time.”

Reaching out the Monitor opening his palm and a portal swallowed Dean.

“Dean! Oliver!” Cas shouted before he too was taken.

Turning towards Oliver the Monitor suddenly had an electrified arrow in his chest. Momentarily stunned he dropped to his knees.

Oliver had the time he needed. Arrow after arrow flew. Each second he beat back the hoard and each second he kept the tower from falling. Until at last he was out of arrows.

A demon collided with his back and sent him to the ground. The wind knocked out of his lungs and slightly dazed, it took all the Green Arrow’s strength to stand back up. Reaching behind to his quiver he felt nothing. And the demons kept coming. Dropping his bow to the ground he sized up his enemy.

With nothing but his fists he charged the uncommon onslaught. Oliver Queen would not fail this World.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The med room at Star labs was filled to bursting. The second Dean and Sam appeared the two bothers locked each other in a tight embrace. The older never the wiser on how close his little brother came to death, and Sam would have it kept that way. When Cas arrived through his portal the angel found himself crushed between the Winchesters. Nearby Kara and Clark held each other, unsure of their home’s fate, or the fate of their loved ones. Kara’s face was blank.

Kate and Ray stood towards the back of the room while Barry and Mia paced anxiously. There was still one member of their team missing.

At last a rippling blue portal appeared. Oliver was deposited with a wet gurgle atop an empty med bed. His face was a ruined patchwork of cuts and his chest was a mess, deep rivets of blood leaked out onto the bed.

“Oliver!” Barry was at his side instantly, and despite lacking superspeed Mia was only seconds behind the speedster. Kara slowly came to stand on the other side of the cot and at its foot the hunters watched.

Unconsciously Dean pressed a hand to his own chest, remembering when the hellhound killed him all those years ago. Oliver looked pretty much as he did then if what Sam told him was anything to go by.

No one even noticed the Monitor was present until he spoke, “He fought to his last breath. Knowing every moment was another life saved.”

“Saved?” Kara searched his face for answers, for hope.

The Monitor had none for her, “Your universe is no more.”

Kara let out a gasp like she’d been punched. Her gaze wandered until it came to Sam and Dean, the despair on their faces matching her own. Now they all had the same thing in common, they were all survivors of dead Earths.

The Monitor continued, “Of 7.53 billion, 3 billion souls made it to Earth-1 on the armada of ships. I calculate 1 billion souls survived due to his noble sacrifice.”

Kara placed her palm on Oliver’s forehead, wishing she could make this easier for her friend.

“Cas?” Dean asked the angel who had hung back, “Can you heal him?”

Mia grabbed Cas’s arm tight when he approached, “Please help him.” Her lower lip trembled.

Cas only shook his head, “I am sorry. My grace is all but gone.”

“Please.” Mia begged sounding very much like a young child desperate for a parent’s comfort.

“I can only take away some of his pain.” Leaning over Oliver, Cas touched two fingers to his head.

Oliver gasped and his breathing came a lot easier. He squeezed Mia’s hand and brought it up to his lips, kissing it, “It’s going to be ok.” He whispered; his throat unable to make any sound louder.

Cas suddenly pitched backwards and if not for Barry’s superspeed he would have collided with the floor. The speedster righted Cas. When he tried to let go the angel’s knees buckled again.

“Here, give him to me.” Dean wrapped an arm around Cas and let the angel lean on him.

“Thank you.” Mia smiled fainty at Cas and let her head fall onto her father’s chest. Sobs wracked her shoulders. Barry rubbed her back.

A green portal sprang to life and a man appeared in a green suit and cape.

Sam was the first to jump into action, stepping in front of his brother and Cas.

“Nash?” Barry asked, unsure what had become of the archaeologist.

He only looked down in shame, “Once upon a time, not anymore. Now, I'm simply a man serving his penance.”

“Penance for what?” Sam stepped toward the man warily.

“I…” He began, gulping as he admitted his biggest and most costly mistake, “I freed the Anti-Monitor from his confinement only to become a Pariah. Sentenced to bear witness to his actions.”

Dean surged forward only to be held back by Sam and Cas, “No Dean don’t.” Sam’s pleas were halfhearted as he clung to his wrist.

“You did this!” Dean was truly crying now, “You’re the cause for all of this!”

Pariah stared the hunter right in the eyes, not backing down from his responsibility, “I am.”

Sara, Lois and Brainy teleported in. Clark left Kara’s side to take his son into his arms and pull his wife close.

Sara rushed to Oliver’s side, “Oli!”

“It's ok,” Oliver smiled up at his oldest living friend, “Sara. This is my destiny.

“Oliver…” Barry clung onto his jacket.

“Barry? You, my friend, are the very best of us.” Oliver reached for Kara, “I gave it all up for you and Kara.”

Kara and Barry looked at each other in shock. This wasn’t what they wanted, never this.

“What-what do you mean?” Barry asked, although truly afraid to know.

“I need the two of you to be the ones to save us.” Oliver clutched both of their hands. Letting go he blindly reached for his daughter, “Mia?”

“Dad.” Mia lifted her head from his chest and met his unfocused gaze.

“Don't forget to find your mother. Ok?” He cupped her cheek, “Find William. Tell him how much I love him. I love you, Mia.” His hand dropped, no longer having the strength to hold it up, “You keep me in your heart. I love y…” And Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow, was breathed his last.

Mia’s words died in her mouth. Barry futility comforted her as she clung to her father’s body. Sara bit hard into her lip and turned her face away, then ran straight out of the room. Clark knew how close his family had come to being reduced to that and he held them all that much tighter. Kara walked numbly backwards until her back hit a wall.

Dean, Sam and Cas felt like they were intruding on a private moment. They hardly knew Oliver and yet they had fought beside the hero, bled beside him, and followed him. Now he was dead like so many other’s they’d known.

“It was not supposed to be like this.” For the first time since the beginning of the Crisis the Monitor appeared unsure, “This is not his ending that I foresaw.”

“Things are turning out differently than expected.” Pariah’s voice was the only sound in the room besides Mia’s soft crying, “But one thing is certain. Everything we know, everything there is, and everything there ever was is doomed.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The heroes regroup on Earth-1.

“Never thought we'd be pouring one out for Oliver,” Sara filled several glasses with whisky.

Kate and Kara stood on one side of Sara while the Winchesters and Cas leaned against the counter on the other.

When Sara had suggested this Dean had jumped at it, because hell yeah boos. That, and if it meant getting away from all the overwhelming tech at Star Labs he was all for it. The lounge here was a comforting sight, what with its fully stocked bar that Dean had every intention of pillaging later, and comfy chairs abounding. All of it made him miss his Dean-Cave back home. Too bad they didn’t have time to enjoy any of it.

Dean knew this place was geek heaven and under normal circumstances his little brother would’ve be all over the particle accelerator, but Sam hadn’t so much as even glanced towards a computer screen since they got here. Which had Dean all kinds of worried.

“We're not gonna wait for Barry?” Kara hung her head morosely. If anybody should be here it should be him, he was after all Oliver’s closest friend besides Diggle.

“I don't think he's ready to say good-bye.” Kate still hadn’t picked up her glass.

“So anybody want to say some words for Oliver?” Sara asked.

“He was a good man.” Cas grunted, taking his share of whisky, holding his glass aloft.

“He sacrificed himself for me and Barry,” Kara said bitterly, guilt settling painfully in her stomach, “Shouldn't have done that.”

“His sacrifice saved a billion more people.” Sara pointed out, “Let's not call that a mistake.”

“Take if from someone who knows too many self-sacrificing martyrs.” Dean came around to her side, taking Kara glass and holding it until she took it from his hands, “He did it because he thought you were worth it.”

Sara held her glass up, “Oliver died the way he lived, a hero.” And she downed it in one go followed suit by Dean and Cas. Glasses hit the table with a bang.

The shot made it halfway to Sam’s mouth before he faltered and sat it down undrunk.

“Not to rush a tender moment, but I think the multiverse is ending soonish. So no.” Kate firmly pushed her glass away.

“I can't, I can't.” Kara followed suit and backed away arms up, like the drink was holding a weapon on her, “Barry's right. This feels like giving up.” She plopped herself down on a couch. For her even one person lost was one to many. How was she supposed to deal with the fact that at least four billion people on her earth died? Much less the countless Earths that had vanished before hers? To top it all off she hadn’t even known this Crisis was coming. Some hero she was turning out to be.

“Hey don’t do that,” Sam suddenly said sitting beside her.

Kara started and then inwardly berated herself. Come on, she had supersonic hearing and she couldn’t notice one hunter walking up to her? She really was losing it. “Do what?” She frowned.

“I can see you beating yourself up.” Sam pressed, “You did everything you could.”

That didn’t hit Kara quite the way it was intended. Her face heated up and she clenched her fists, “That’s the problem! I threw in everything I had, and all those people still died. I wasn’t strong enough. I’ve lost two planets in my lifetime, and now. Its hard to see any hope going forward. All those Earth’s are still in danger.”

“We still got billions to safety.” Sam hesitantly put a comforting hand on her shoulder, “That’s not nothing.”

Kara gulped. But it wasn’t enough. Not for her. All those people were now homeless, just as she was when Krypton was destroyed. With a sigh she raised her head seeing matching sadness and loss on everyone’s faces in the room, “I’m sorry. You all have lost so much today. And Sam you’re right, saving all those people it’s not nothing.” Abruptly she stood and began pacing, “There has to be a way we can undo this. Oliver, my mom, Argo, Earth” To Sam, “Your Earth. Ooh all those Earths, all those people who vanished. There has to be a way we can get them back.”

Dean and Cas shared a look, ‘Well we can say from experience that death isn’t always the end of it.”

Sam clasped his hands together, “Yeah, we’ve lost count how many times we’ve come back.”

“What?” Kara’s eyes uneasily jumped back and forth between the two brothers and angel.

Cas eyed his two favorite human’s with exasperation.

At the start of the death conversation Sara had poured herself another shot. The assassin’s experiences with death and the Death totem were not a pleasant ones to say the least, “Hey I was dead once for sixth months, soo…” She leaned her head back and gulped the whisky down winching at the bite of the alcohol, “not my best moment.”

Dean saddled up beside Sara and held out his empty glass which she promptly filled, “I get it. I was dead too for four months, or forty years depending on how you look at it. It doesn’t get any easier.”

“No it really doesn’t,” Sara smiled half-heartedly. Not many people understood what she’d been through.

“Hey Cas, any chatter from Heaven?” Dean asked while throwing back his shot.

Cas shifted, clearly uncomfortable, “Since the start of the crisis its been quiet. I can tell the angels are still there but they haven’t said anything since the screams.

Kara and Kata exchanged startled looks. Heaven? Of course, how could they have forgotten that the unassuming guy having drinks with them was a real honest to God Angel.

“What about this Earth’s heaven? Sam asked, leaning his elbows on his knees.

“Its all the same Heaven Sam.” Cas replied.

“Huh?” Sara furrowed her brows.

Cas turned to address the whole group, knowing her would need to explain, “Heaven and Hell exist outside time and space and are infinite and all encompassing. They may be multiple versions of the same people, demons, or angels but they all converge in the same place after death . Perhaps the only good thing about this is when Death reaps the Earths the heavens of those people will be safe.”

“Heaven isn’t living Cas.” Dean’s dark tone troubled Kara.

“All the vanished people deserve to live out their lives as they see fit. Not make do with an after life because some megalomaniac wants to rule and will ease everything to do it.” Kara was quickly growing angry. She knew she should take comfort that something of the lost souls lives on, but it wasn’t enough.

To everyone’s surprise, except the Winchesters, Cas was quick to agree, “We will undo this. We will get everyone back. Even if I have to march back into heaven and take them.”

Kate was the first to speak after Cas’s unexpected outburst, “I though Angels were supposed to work for heaven.”

“Heaven doesn’t give me orders anymore. I make my own choices.” Cas’s voice was low and gravely as he met Dean’s gaze from across the room.

Dean nodded, “Right, so we find this Anti-Monitor and Death and we tell them to take this Crisis and shove it so far up their…”

Harbinger sprung into existence right next to Dean.

“Son a bit…” Dean bit his tongue and jumped away from the extra dimensional being, “Don’t do that.”

Harbinger only raised her eyebrow, “First we focus on stopping it from happening to every other universe.”

“Oh, hey.” Sara had abandoned the glass for the whole bottle of whisky by this point and raised it in greeting, “Welcome to the joy zone. Where's Dig?”

“At home with JJ.” Harbinger, “He still doesn't know about Oliver.”

“JJ?” Sam asked.

“My son.” Harbinger’s face pinched in worry and for the first time Sam and Dean saw that this woman was just as much an unwillingly participant caught up in all this as the rest of them.

“Lyla,” Sara began.

“I know,” Harbinger cut her off gently, “I just don’t know how to tell him.”

“You can’t just hijack the Waverider!” Ray’s protest echoed into the room followed shortly by the Monitor and Ray bounding behind him, “Our crew is still on there.”

Sam leaned down to Kara, “Waverider?” he asked in aside to her.

“The Legend’s time ship.” She responded off handily, because of course they had a time ship.

“Time traveling spaceship? Really?!” Dean threw his arms up cause come on how much could a sane man really take.

“If there is any chance at surviving the Crisis, we need its technology.” The Monitor walked up to Sara.

Sara grimaced, “Hoo. Yeah. I kind of promised our crew they'd never have to do another crossover.”

Harbinger took a step back and held out her arms in what everyone had quickly come to realize was a precursor to her teleporting away, “We don't need your crew, just Ray's lab, and we have an entire multiverse of Waveriders at our disposal.” And she flashed away.

“Oh,” Sara didn’t really know how to feel about that, “Great.”

Sara and Kate followed Ray and the Monitor out to await Harbinger’s return with, hopefully, a functional Waverider to boot.

Kara crossed her arms, “Hey Sam, Dean, Castiel.” They shuffled forwards. Kara had seen how uncomfortable they’d been since arriving on Earth 1. At least for Sam she could tell he was a lot like her, needing a mission to focus on when the going got tough, and right now she didn’t think things could get much tougher. And out of all the heroes on the team they seemed the most comfortable around her up till now.

“I prefer Cas. What do you need Kara?” Cas asked.

Kara smiled at being allowed to use the angel’s nickname, “Ok, Cas then.” Kara said adjusting her glasses, “I was going to check up on Dreamer and J’onn to see how the refugee camps were setting in. We still need to do a head count of how many actually managed to make it through. Do you want to come?”

“Of course.” Sam nodded.

“Thank you. Sam,” Kara didn’t know what came over her when she lightly took his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, “you helped a lot of people get onto ships in National City, I know they’d be glad to see your face.”

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

The main refugee camp had been erected in the park in the center of Central city. Only a few of the city’s residents had begrudged the newcomers, most having delt with the threat of metas and alien attacks long enough to have compassion for people in need. Wrapping all around the outskirts of the park were various lines passing out food, blankets, clothes, you name it. Within the park itself were hundreds of tents and even a few circus platforms donated by Gotham’s Flying Grayson’s to house all the people.

There was a woosh in the air and people glanced upwards, cheering when they saw familiar red and blue blurs streaking across the sky.

Kara landed with Sam and Clark beside her with Dean and Cas.

The second Dean’s feet touched the ground he ran for a trash can, emptying the contents of his stomach. Cas stood by his side and sympathetically patted his back. Once his stomach finished attempting to vacate his body Dean righted himself and wiped a disgusted hand across his mouth, “Man I thought that would be easier than planes. Its worse.”

“Maybe I should take your temperature,” Cas reached for Dean’s face with one finger.

“Nope that’s not gonna happen,” Dean, still a little dazed, gently smacked away his hand which earned him a smirk from the angel. “You’re messing with me.”

“I don’t know what you mean.” Cas’s face was the perfect image of innocence.

“Yeah sure,” Dean again wiped at his mouth which felt gross and fuzzy.

“Here!” Kara tossed Dean a bottle water from a nearby table and went with Clark to greet the gathering crowd.

Dean quickly swigged down the water to wash out his mouth. Then Dean followed his brother’s gaze to the Kryptonian woman and smirked.

“What?” Sam snapped at his brother.

“Nothing.” Dean scoffed, but Sam’s bitch face wasn’t letting up, “It’s just funny seeing a giant being carried by someone so tiny.”

Sam rolled his eyes, “Dude. She could pulverize you into dust if she wanted.”

“I know, that makes it even better.” Dean clapped Sam on the back and followed the supers before his little brother to snap back a witty retort.

J’onn exited one on the larger tents with Dreamer, having psychically sensed the arrival of the supers and the hunters.

When Sam saw Dreamer he have her a happy wave. Glad to see the hero he worked with on Earth-38.

“I have you to thank for saving my brother I hear,” Dean said.

Dreamer nodded.

“Thank you.” Dean smiled at her warmly.

“Supergirl.” The martian bowed his head in acknowledgement.

“Hello J’onn,” Kara squared her shoulders, putting on a strong front, “How are our people settling in?”

“There have been a few fights over supplies, but I’ve been able to convey with my psychic projections the event that led to the exodus from our Earth to this one. It has seemed to keep the calm so far.”

“This planet cannot sustain three billion more people.” Cas commented.

“I have already made contact with the martians of this universe.”

“Wait!” Dean’s eye bugged out of his head, “You’re saying that there are little green men up there too.” Dean pointed sky ward.

J’onn face twitched in amusement, “Yes, and we are not little, in fact most martians are twice the size of a normal human.”

“How many universes have Martians?” Sam wondered aloud.

“Almost off of them.” J’onn answered.

“Shame ours didn’t,” Dean wished aloud.

“Yes it did Dean.” Cas said off handily while observing the tents and surrounding structures. The comment was so casual sounding that he could have been reading that day’s newspaper.

“WHAT?” Deans whirled, “How come you never said anything?"

“It was never of import,” Cas tilted his head.

“We have aliens?” Sam’s eyebrows disappeared into his hair.

“Of course,” Cas said like it was the most obvious thing every, “why would you think your planet was the only one with life?”

“Aliens man.” Dean couldn’t help but remember the little “alien incident” a few years ago that had really turned out to be fairies. Why couldn’t he have dealt with the real deal, it would have been so much cooler than the supernatural crap he faced on the daily.

“Anyway,” Kara cleared her throat.

“Yes,” J’onn picked up here he left off, ignoring Deans outburst. “In this reality the white martians were driven off Mars decades ago. I communicated with the head of the green martian’s government and she was willing to open relations with this earth’s president.”

Dreamer continued his explanation, “We are thinking about moving willing people to Mars for the time being. The Martians have underground dwellings that can be converted to be habitable for humans.”

Clark stepped forward, “I’m going to fly around to New York, Gotham, Star City and the other cities that have camps. If only to reassure the people that they are safe here.”

“Go,” Kara hugged him, “I’m going to stay here for now.”

With that Superman bolted up into the sky, a small sonic boom echoed across the park in his wake.

“Wow,” Sam still couldn’t believe that he was working with the real honest to God Superman. At Kara, Dean and Cas’s look, “Our lives are weird.”

Turning to the Earth 79 survivors J’onn waved for them to follow him, “Sam, Dean. While I was going through the refugees minds I found something I think you should see.”

“What is is J’onn?” Sam was worried.

“Our world wasn’t the only one to have refugees saved.”

“What do you mean?” Kara stepped up next to Sam, her mind going towards the next possible threat.

J’onn opened his mouth and then closed it, “I think you should just come and see.” He led them inside the tent he’d come from. “When I touched their minds and realized who they were I brought them all here.”

“Brought who here?”

“Sam! Dean!” A woman’s voice suddenly shouted from across the large complex.

The brothers’ heads shot up and they both froze. A blonde woman was running with arms outstretched. In an instant she had them pressed close to her chest.

Kara watched the outwardly strong hunters and couldn’t believe her eyes how tenderly they clung to this woman, each tucking their head into the crook of her shoulder.

Dean was the first to break away, pressing a kiss to her hair, “Mom. How are you here?”

MOM! Their mother only looked a few years older than Dean. Kara knew there had to be a story there.

“Was wondering when you boys were gonna show up.” Another woman walked up with two girls, one with long dark hair and the other with blonde, tucked under her arms.

“Jody!” Sam broke away from his mother and grabbed her and the two girls into a hug.

“Claire?” Casitiel’s deep voice rumbled behind them and the young woman faced him.

“Hello Castiel.” She crossed her arms across her chest, feigning nonchalance but everyone could see she was glad to see the angel. Then she froze in shock when she found herself wrapped in an embrace. Castiel was hugging her!

Remembering himself Cas stepped back, a sheepish smile on his face, “Apologies.”

Claire returned his grin, “Its ok. You’re really not so stuck up anymore are you?” She teased.

Cas laughed, “Or a dick.”

“You’re still a doof,” Claire’s face softened, “Its good to see you Castiel,” It was Cas’s turn to be shocked when the girl threw her arms around him.

Mary, still coming down from the adrenaline high that the morning’s event’s gave her, hurriedly explained to Dean and Sam, “There was shaking, and the power went out. We didn’t know what was happening. Then this lady showed up and in a flash we were wondering around this park. Then a few hours later all these ships started landing.”

“We got the basics from Mr. Martian over there.” Jody jerked her thumb over her shoulder.

“Wait? Is that?” Claire said only now taking in Kara.

“Yeah it is.” Dean confirmed, bouncing on the balls of his feet, “And not just some cosplayer, she’s the real deal.”

Sam grinned at Kara and his Mother. If was the first time Kara saw his face completely relaxed and she thought to herself that it looked good on him. In fact it was like a switch had been flipped in both the Winchesters and the angel. Sure their eyes still told stores of loss and pain but now Kara could see hope and light there too.

“Ah right, Supergirl” Sam gestured at her, “This is our Mother, Mary Winchester.” Their mother waved, still a little awestruck by the Kryptonian. “And this is Jody, Claire and Alex. Guys this is Supergirl, from Earth 38.”

“Hi.” Kara waved a bit shyly.

“NO way this is so cool.” Alex blushed.

“Can you really fly?” Claire said hand on her hips, feigning nonchalance.

“Ahem,” Kara took a step back and pushed off the ground with the tips of her toes. It was enough to send her ten-ish feet into the air where she hovered, laughing giddily with the teens before touching back down.

Sam beamed up at her while Dean tried to play it cool.

To cover his star struck expression Dean cleared his throat. “And she’s bullet proof.” Dean clapped Kara on the back, wincing and shaking his hand out, “Yep definitely bullet proof.”

Claire and Alex converged on Kara. Mary took that opportunity to pull Jody and her boys, and yes Cas counted as one of her boys, to the side to talk.

“What happened to our Earth?” Mary asked, she remembered the rumbling and feeling like Jody’s house was going to fly apart. And the bright white light that hurt to look at.

Meanwhile Kara socialized with the young girls. Alex in particular reminded Kara of her sister, Alex. In fact there was a lot she and her sister had in common with Alex and Claire. Like Kara, Claire had been adopted into this family after losing her parents to cosmic forces outside her control. And just like her sister, Alex had to find room in her life for a sister that had been thrust without warning into her life.

However she couldn’t help but over hear with the Winchesters and Cas struggle to explain the Crisis. Jody let out a gasp when they got to the part where not only their Earth, but all the others were vanishing.

Wistfully she watched Mary fold her boys into her arms again. Not for the first time wishing she could have her own mother’s arms around her.

Alex and Claire noticed she’d stopped paying attention and carefully nudged her.

“Oh I’m sorry.” She apologized.

“It’s fine,” Claire waved off her apology, “Its been a long day.”

“That’s an understatement.” Alex said then looked at the ceiling when a buzzing sound rumbled the tent.

They all ran out, still on edge for any possible threat. A ship unlike any of the alien ones from Earth 38 exited a portal over the park and hovered above the main tent.

“Hope you guys are ready,” Came Sara’s voice over the ship’s loudspeakers, “Cause the Waverider is back in business.”

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Dean’s good mood at finding their family alive was only boosted when the jump ship deposited Kara, Cas and hunters aboard the Waverider. The second his feet hit the bulkhead floors Dean couldn’t stop running his hands along the sleek walls.

“Dean?” Sam leaned in close to his brother, slightly embarrassed. “What are you doing?”

“A spaceship man! We’re on a spaceship.” Dean said giddily.

The look Sam gave his brother clearly said, ‘don’t make me look bad in front of the real life alien right next to us’.

Dean smirked knowingly at his brother and tilted his head in Kara’s direction, wagging his eyebrows.

The bitchface Sam gave was worthy of the record books.

Even Cas failed to hold back a smile at the younger Winchester’s face. Then the angel had to run to catch up with Dean when he jogged ahead of the group. The last thing Cas wanted was to lose sight of Dean, distracted as the hunter was.

“Look at that kitchen,” Dean shouted into one of the open doorways, “it’s bigger than the one at our bunker!”

“You guys have a bunker?” Kara said as she and Sam came to a stop at the entrance to the mess hall while Dean rushed inside.

Sam nodded slightly proud of how impressed she sounded, “Yeah the last few years or so. It’s been the closest to a home we’ve had since our adopted father Bobby’s house. Dean’s favorite place besides the gun range is the kitchen.”

“I can tell,” Kara let a laugh escape her watching Dean flit from the industrial sized grills to the massive refrigerator. Kara had to admit it was a pretty amazing set up. The few times she’d been aboard the Waverider she’d been in full on crisis mode, no pun intended. So, she’d never been able to enjoy anything as simple a meal. Maybe once this was all over she could rectify that.

Dean opened the fridge and suddenly gave a yelp, jumping away from it.

Instantly Cas was across the room, angel blade at the ready before Sam or Kara could do anything.

“What?!” Sam shouted, eyeing the fridge door with suspicion.

Kara on the other hand looked ready to rip the appliance out and fling it into the cold vacuum of space, “What’s wrong?” she growled stepping between the three and the offending fridge.

Sam had to admit he felt more than a little touched at how quickly the Kryptonian had jumped to Dean’s defense. In the short time she’d known them she was fast becoming a friend. The only other individual who’d ever wormed their way into the Winchesters’ hearts this fast was a spunky little red head nerd. Sam’s heart gave a pang at Charlie’s memory and could only hope the same fate didn’t befall any of their new team members. Especially Kara, Sam’s brain tacked on.

“Dean?” Cas shook him. Dean didn’t appear to be hurt, just a little freaked, and maybe grossed out. Cas titled his head. All his time with the Winchesters had made reading human emotions much easier for him. And Cas knew just about every expression Dean’s face could make. If he often stared at the hunter when no one was watching no one had to know. And yes, that look on Dean’s face wasn’t one of fear of a looming threat. Dean was thoroughly disgusted. Cas breathed a sigh of relief and tried not to panic at how he actually needed to breathe now.

“Dean what?” Kara asked again, exasperated when the eldest Winchester didn’t answer and only continued to point at the fridge.

Finally, Dean shook himself out of his stupor and yanked the door open. “That!”

Inside was a collection of various body parts, some appeared to be animal while others were decidedly of a more monstrous nature. And wait… Kara, Sam and Cas squinted and bent over in unison… was that a puppet hand?

“Hey!” A gruff voice shouted from the mess’s entrance.

The four whirled around to see a very pissed off Mick hefting his heat gun, “I stole and hacked apart all that fair and square. That’s my collection.” He thrust his weapon at the still open fridge.

“More like a cry for help if you asked me.” A clipped man’s voice said over the intercom. The sudden out of nowhere sound startled everyone, especially Cas who jumped and readied his blade again.

Mick glowered up at the ceiling, “No one asked you Hardware.”

Kara was glad to know that Mick on any Earth was still Mick, “Hi Mick.” She raised her hand in a small wave.

“Skirt.” Mick grunted in the only greeting Kara was going to get from the Legend. Out of no where he produced a sandwich and shoved it in his mouth, chewing loudly.

“If you would,” The voice spoke again, “The Monitor has arrived and is asking everyone to meet him on the bridge.”

“Gonna yank out that A.I.’s voice box.” Mick said spilling some lettuce to the floor and furiously clipping his heat gun to his belt.

“As if you could find it.” The voice, as they all came to realize was in fact the ship’s, bit back sarcastically.

“Oh I’m going to love it here.” Dean grinned as they followed Mick out.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Soon it was Sam’s turn to fan-girl out. When they all reached the bridge Dean had to physically drag Sam away from the main consul. Sam’s fingers had been itching to check out the technology. Dean was all kinds of thrilled that his little brother had his nerd interest back, don’t get him wrong. But knowing the Winchester’s luck Dean figured Sam would end up accidentally initiating a self destruct or something.

“Later big boy.” Dean guided Sam to where the other heroes had gathered around the Monitor.

Except for Sara who was no where to be seen. There had been mention of her trying to find a way to bring back Oliver.

“You have all lost a great hero.” The Monitor intoned.

“The wrong hero.” Barry growled out while pacing in agitation.

The Monitor only raised his eyebrow, “I do not disagree.”

“Woah tell it like it is,” Dean was pissed on Barry’s behalf, nothing said motivation like wishing a member of your team had died.

Barely sparing the hunter a glance the Monitor continued, “You have suffered a horrible loss, but you have every reason not to lose hope, 8, in fact. Across space and time…”

Baby Johnathan cried out in Clarks arms, “Sorry,” He whispered and handed his child to his wife who began lightly bouncing him.

“Across space and time exist 8 heroes, beings of the purest will who can ultimately…” A loud shriek interrupted him again.

“I don’t know.” Lois grimaced and passed the baby to Kara. Kara’s face lit up as the baby quieted and plopped a hand on her cheek.

“Beings of the purest will who can ultimately…” the Monitor’s lips pulled into a tight line when he was interrupted again.

Johnathan became inconsolable, his little hand promptly pulled back and smacked Kara on the chin. “Its not working.” Kara groaned and turned to Kate who crossed her arm across her chest and shook her head firmly. Kara rolled her eyes and moved onto the next person in the line up.

Cas suddenly found himself with an armful of baby. At first the angel held Johnathan away from his body awkwardly. At seeing his discomfort Dean rolled his eyes and expertly arranged Cas’s arms to hold the baby closer to his chest. With the baby settled Dean and Cas tensed for another tearful outburst.

It never came. Cas met Dean’s relieved grin with his own, slightly taken aback by the warm expression on the hunter but enjoying it none the less. Johnathan gurgled happily and gazed up at Cas in awe. Idly Cas wondered if the little child was one of those special people able to see more of his true self than just the human vessel he was inhabiting. Tiny fingers curled around his tie and the baby’s eyes slid closed.

“Go go,” Louis whispered.

Cas tilted his head and the baby’s parents gestured for him to leave to room.

“Oh,” He said in his deep gravely voice that somehow didn’t wake Johnathan and he swept out of the room, trench coat billowing in his wake.

“You were saying,” Dean had to clear his throat, shaking himself out of his thoughts surrounding Cas and himself saving a little baby girl years ago. Back when Cas had been amazingly human.

“Beings of the purest will, who can ultimately defeat the Anti-Monitor and help save the multiverse. They are known as Paragons.”

Barry was angry, “Paragons? And you're just dropping this on us now?”

Nonplussed the Monitor explained, “I only learned of their existence recently after consulting the Book of Destiny.”

“How? We destroyed it last year.” Barry asked.

Sam glanced at Dean with a ‘what the hell’ frown. Dean just shrugged. Both were completely clueless as to what on earth a “Book of Destiny” was. At least it didn’t sound near as threatening as the “Book of the Damned” they’d dealt with, but then again you never know.

With a sweep of his hand the Monitor summoned a book made of pure light. Whispers emanated from the thick pages in a language none aboard understood except the Monitor. “After Oliver's early demise, I went back into the time stream and retrieved it intact. It is now safely stored in this ship's library.”

“So it's what, Plan B?” Barry ran a hand over his face, “That's comforting.”

Kate agreed, “Anyone else wishing they'd done that shot?”

Sam nodded vigorously.

“Wait,” Kara had a sudden idea, “If the book can rewrite destiny, can it bring back Earth-38 or any of the other Earths?”

“Trying to re-create an entire world would surely drive one to madness.” The Monitor warned.

“It would be worth it if it worked.” Kara said to herself, mostly.

Sam was standing close enough that he’d heard her. “Kara,” Sam intoned, worried at the direction her self-sacrificing comments were taking.

“Sammy,” Dean said quietly, “We’ve done far worse for far less. Maybe this plan had something to it.”

“What about my dad?” Mia, who’d been hanging back suddenly walked all the way into the room. “Could it bring him back?”

The Monitor drew himself up, barely any emotion showing on his fathomless face, “If only it could. While Oliver Queen was to die in this Crisis, this is not how I saw events unfold, but as the Anti-Monitor gets stronger, I grow weaker. We must find all 8 Paragons.”

“How about, like, a little hint?” Louis pinched her fingers together emphasizing the “little” of her question.

“I have 5. Kara Zor-El,” The Monitor turned fully to Kara, who took a cautious step back at the attention, “despite all you have endured, you are the Paragon of Hope.”

Rather than feeling relief Kara only felt her stomach drop, “Well, you might want to double-check your omnipotence because I'm not feeling that hopeful right now.”

Sam placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Kara smiled sadly up at him and then dropped her eyes to the floor. Seeing the faith that he already had in her in the short amount of time they’d known each other was overwhelming, especially since she felt like all she’d done the last day was fail on an epic scale.

The Monitor continued on, “Sara Lance is the Paragon of Destiny.”

Ray as always was a little ball of sunshine, “Oh! Neato!” he said earning himself an eyeroll from Mia and Dean. “Well, come on guys it makes sense. Captain of time travel and all that.”

To this the Monitor only raised an eyebrow, “I have only descriptions for the other three paragons. One is of a second Kryptonian, who is said to have suffered a greater loss than most mortal men could endure. Today, he stands as the Paragon of Truth.”

“I'll find him.” Clark announced and Lois laced her arm through his.

“I'll go with you.” She said.

“The fourth?” Kate asked.

“The Paragon of Courage is known only as the Bat of the future.”

At this Dean perked up, “The Batman?” He whispered so low only Kara and Clark could hear. His obvious hero worship had Kara biting her lip to keep in her laugh despite how low she’d been feeling only moments before.

“And the fifth?” Sam crossed his arms.

“The path to the fifth will be found near the end of the apocalypse on Earth 14. There, a hero who has given everything for the survival of humanity will be revealed. This hero is the Paragon of Freedom.” The Monitor now addressed Dean, “I believe it is a version of Earth you have visited before.”

“Yeah and it was a real cake walk.” Dean’s voice dripped with sarcasm. Just thinking about the future that Zachariah had sent him to made him shudder. He especially felt sick at what had become of Sam and Cas. “I’ll go.” He volunteered, and Sam nodded with him. Dean rubbed a palm over his face, resigned to the fact that’d he would never truly escape Lucifer, Michael, or the hell they put his family through.

“No,” The Monitor said firmly, flooring Dean and Sam, “The Winchester’s are on a different course.”

Pissed that he was being told to sit out a mission Dean snapped back at the celestial being, “Where’d you cook up these crazy theories anyway?”

“I enlisted the assistance of Felicity Smoak, who earned the wisdom of a second book.” The Monitor answered Dean’s question as a teacher would to a misbehaving child.

“That's a lot of books.” Clark groaned.

“The Tome of the Guardians.” The Monitor announced.

Dean leaned in close to Sam, “He’s just making these names up.”

“All names are made up.” Sam hissed back.

Ignoring their aside the Monitor continued, “It revealed the names of Ms. Zor-El and Ms. Lance, as well as the other three.”

“Bummed out Kryptonian, Apocalyptic Rambo, and a future Bat. Which technically means…” Kate wondered aloud.

The Monitor confirmed her suspicions, “Earth-99 exists in a future time where Bruce Wayne has dedicated himself, body and soul, to fighting crime.”

“I'm sorry. Go back,” Ray looked like he was short circuiting, “Bruce Wayne is the Dark Knight?”

“If we could all keep that to ourselves, that'd be great.” By Kate’s expression if she’d had a batarang on her person it would currently be flying towards Ray’s face this very second.

Sam and Dean jumped when Batwoman turned her fiery gaze on them, “I take it you already knew about that.”

Sam gulped.

“Nooooo! Nonono.” Dean trailed off and suddenly found something very interesting about the way the floor went together.

“Hmmm,” and a narrowing of her eyes was Kate’s only response.

“The path to find him will lead you to the Paragon of Courage.” The Monitor said, now letting his impatience bleed into his otherwise calm exterior.

“Okay.” Kate figured there was no use fighting it, “Who wants to meet Batman?”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter the Batman 
> 
> Author's Note: If you like please consider leaving a comment. I love hearing from readers. You all make doing this worth it. Enjoy this chapter, its a bit long this time :).

“Alright. Who wants to meet Batman?” Kate crossed her arms with a smirk.

“Me!” Dean’s rather loud shout cut through the thick tension on the bridge like a knife.

And yes, Sam groaned inwardly, his man child brother was indeed bouncing on the balls of his feet like the twelve year old he never got to be. “Really Dean?” Sam asked exasperated, biting back a fond grin at his brother’s antics.

“What? I can geek out too.”

Kate crossed her arms standing tall, “Alright, Let’s do this.”

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

A little while later Kara was the only one left on the bridge while the others prepped for their missions. Having long since changed back into her civilian clothes she’d hoped it would put her more at ease. Right now her suit jacket felt like it was choking her, her pants were constricting and her glasses felt uncomfortably like a mask. The little reminder of Oliver made her insides ache. She was working herself up and she knew it.

With a huff she flicked on the circular viewscreen in the center of the bridge. Ok. She was the paragon of hope. She could do this. Yeah, she thought to herself, she could be hopeful.

It was that hope that made her scan across the multiverse. Maybe the Monitor was wrong. Come on, Kara clenched the cold metal at the base of the screen, there had to be something. It couldn’t all just be gone.

“Oh hey, there you are,” Sam’s voice broke though her musing.

Wearily she raised her head from her work, “Hi Sam,” a small smile pulling at her lips as he came into view.

“Hi,” Sam came to a stop and peered over her shoulder, “Kate was looking for you.”

“I know. I just…” she gestured at the screen where multiple universes were on display. On the main screen was Earth-38 as it stood just before the antimatter wave hit, “I just… I had to see if…”

“If there was anything left?” Sam finished for her.

“Yeah,” All the air escaped her lungs with that one word.

He felt the same. Call it morbid curiosity or an unreasonable hope, Sam had to know what had become of his home. Sure Harbinger had shown them back on Earth-38, although in the heat of the moment he hadn’t processed much of what he’d seen. Was it only Earth that was gone? The whole solar system? Everything? Sam had a hard time wrapping his head around that level of destruction.

Kara nodded firmly and reached to press the play button, her hand stopping only a hairbreadth from actually touching it, “If I look then its real. I don’t know if I can do this.”

Sam found that for someone who contained so much ground-shattering power and strength Kara sounded so small and vulnerable at this moment. “Me neither,” Sam felt pinpricks at the corner of his eyes. Clearing his throat he composed himself and brushed his hand over the readout of Argo city, “This is where you grew up?”

“It is.” A wistful look softened the grief on Kara’s face.

Sam knew he’d asked the right question, “Tell me about it. What was it like growing up there?”

“It wasn’t so different from growing up on Earth, honestly. Except of course for the red sun. Oh when the light would hit the jewel mountains it would set the whole city ablaze in glittering light,” As Kara spoke she was faraway, the memory a happy one. “My mother would gather me up in blankets and we’d just sit and look out my bedroom window. She said Rao, our god, had placed the mountains there as reminder that long before we were born and long after we are gone they will still be standing. They were a reminder that no matter how bad we though it could get they would always be there to lean on when things got hard.”

“That’s a beautiful story.”

“When Krypton was destroyed I never thought I would never see them again. Then we found Argo and the mountains, they were still there. After everything my people had endured and all the hardships I’d faced they were still standing. Now they’re really gone.” Kara quickly wiped at the wetness on her face, “Oh you think I’d be done crying by now?” She took off her glasses and held them in a clenched hand atop the viewscreen, “OK…” After a steady beat, “I think I’m ready.”

“I’ll be right here.” Sam placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, “I know you’re strong enough to kick my ass into next Thursday but I’m here if you need someone to lean on.”

“That means a lot.” Kara covered his hand with her own and gave him a gently squeeze, “Alright.” And she pressed play and splayed her hand across the picture of her childhood home.

Beneath her fingertips Argo shattered apart in the face of the Antimatter Wave. Even witnessing it before in real time didn’t soften the agonizing blow and it was all she could do to keep from physically falling down.

The wave then approached Earth-38. It was as if her throat was held in a vise and she was unable to look away. The only indicator the consul gave was a dull rumble as the planet was erased.

Sam kept a hold of Kara’s hand while he entered in the readout for Earth-79. And just like with Earth-38 the only sound the planet made as it died on screen was a cold hum. Everything was gone. The planet. The galaxy. Everything.

“Two entire universes wiped from existence distilled down to a computer graphic.”

Sam and Kara whirled around.

Facing them was the Monitor and a small, lanky man in a crisp grey suit. However, something in the man’s off-putting tone and his steely eyes had Sam on high alert. Instinctively he was reaching for his gun he kept tucked in his pants.

“Got to say missing that wow factor,” The man smirked and tilted his head to indicate the consul.

Whoever this man was Sam could tell he had a history with Kara, and if the fury spreading over her usually kind feature was any indication it was an ugly history.

Kara’s mouth opened and closed and opened again, “Lena killed you!”

“Yeah. But only for a little while.” The wink the man gave oozed arrogance. It made Sam want to punch his smug little face.

Kara, who’d saved hundreds. Kara, who Sam saw give hope to refugees when she herself felt lost. Kara, who mere hours after her mother’s death she was trying to comfort his family, stalked forward. Her eyes blazed with a blast that at this close a range could and probably would prove fatal to the man before them.

The Monitor merely raised an eyebrow, his words alone were enough to the stop the Kryptonain her tracks, “Everyone has a part to play, even Lex Luthor.”

Holy shit! That was it. Those was the only two words Sam could coherently think.

Kara let out a strangled gasp, pulling back, “You did this? You brought that poisonous snake back?” She pointed accusingly at Lex, her whole hand shaking.

The Monitor was as cryptic as ever in his callous response, “His destiny was unfulfilled. Lex Luthor still has an important role to play.”

Every second Sam spent with the Monitor the more he came to distrust the being, “So you can bring a murder back to life, but you can’t bring back Oliver?” he said feeling his face heat up in anger.

“I restored Luthor long before the crisis caused my power to wane.”

“And what about those innocent lives on Earth-38? Or Earth 79?” Kara shouted while using all her will power to keep from pummeling Luthor and the Monitor into the ship’s bulkheads, “Did they not have destinies to fulfill? I'm sorry, but I can't trust a man who thinks Lex Luthor is an ally.” At feeling her last bit of self-control slip away Kara all but ran from the bridge in a blur.

“Kara!” Sam called after her and made to follow but Luthor’s self-satisfied smirk halted his pursuit.

“I’d stop while you’re ahead kid,” Luthor sneered knowingly at Sam, “People around Krytonians tend to end up dead, or worse.”

“And I’d shut up unless you want to go back to wherever he pulled you out of.” Sam crowded into the smaller man’s space, towering over him with a good half foot in height on Luthor, “I’m guessing he won’t be able to bring you back a second time.” Sam begrudgingly had to give Luthor some credit, he didn’t so much as flinch.

Luthor’s lips turned up as he took in Sam’s beat-up jeans and worn red flannel, clearly unimpressed, “I’m sorry. You are?”

“I’m the guy who punched the Devil in the face,” Sam growled, his tone promising violence, “So don’t tempt me.”

At this Luthor’s eye gave the slightest twitch of nervous energy. Sam would have to settle for that. For right now he had more important things he had to do, not the least was finding Kara to make sure she was ok. With one last intimating lean in towards Luthor, Sam turned on his heel and stalked off into the bowels of the ship.

:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Cas wondered the halls of the Waverider. Amazingly baby Johnathan had remained sound asleep. Now all he had to do what find the baby’s parents. Where had everybody gone to?

He was passing an open door when a gruff voice called out from inside, “What’s with the tax accountant get up?”

Cas paused and walked backwards until he saw the bald and heavily muscled man he, Kara and the Winchesters had met when first boarding the Waverider. Inside the open door was a bedroom full of old Roman armor and guns of every kind. The man was currently sitting at a desk with an old typewriter writing away.

In regards to his question Cas answered with a small shrug, “Its just what I wear. I don’t believe we were properly introduced. I am Castiel.”

“Oh we’re using our made up names then. I’m Heatwave,” Mick said around a mouthful of hamburger while pausing his typing, “What kinda code name is Castiel?”

“Its not a ‘code name’” Cas said, one hand making little air quotes while keeping a hold of baby John. “I’m an angel of the Lord.” Usually the angel bit would make the most formidable demons quake in their shoes. This Mick merely kept chomping on his hamburger. The lack of reaction irked Cas more than a little, “Why are you called Heatwave?” he said in a challenge.

“I burned my family alive. I like to set things on fire.” Mick stated matter of factly.

“Oh.” Cas felt his eyebrows tried to disappear into his hair line. For the life of him couldn’t figure out why in his Father’s name such a man was aboard the ship with heroes.

“What were you doing?” Cas asked inducting with a tilt of his head at the typewriter.

Mick seemed to remember himself and threw a stack of papers on top of the typewriter defensively, “I was watching porn.”

Cas raised a single eyebrow, “On a typewriter?”

“He’s attempting to hammer out a sequel.” The ship’s voice suddenly said and Cas inwardly kicked himself at being startled again. At least he hadn’t physically jumped.

“You shut your trap,” Mick shouted at the ceiling, “I’m a serious author.”

“You have one book, and it’s self published.” The ship’s consciousness corrected.

“It still counts.” Mick growled under his breath.

“I have to go.” Cas said holding the baby a little closer, “And be somewhere else.” With that he fled further into the ship.

After his frankly disturbing encounter with the incendiary author Cas decided he wanted to find Dean… and Sam he added in an afterthought. But mostly Dean. After returning the child to his parents Cas walked around yet another bend in the long empty corridor. How big was this ship? He halted when a deep voice reverberated off the walls ominously.

“Castiel.”

Cas turned around to find the Monitor barely five feet away from himself. How the being had gotten so close to him unnoticed the angel could only blame on his failing grace.

“Monitor,” Cas narrowed his gaze, still not fully trusting this creature.

The Monitor looking him up and down, eyes searching and analyzing. It made Cas uncomfortable.

“You are falling.” The Monitor observed.

Previously such a comment would have caused Cas a great deal of distress. Now this outcome was an inevitably that Cas strangely looked forward to. His ruined wings were a constant painful reminder of his failures and soon they would be gone. He was so close to being human even now. In this Crisis he could expend the rest of his power and finally be able to fall. He could be an equal to Dean and this time as a human he knew he would have a place with the Winchesters.

“That cannot be allowed to happen,” The Monitor crushed his hopes in a single sentence.

“What?!” Cas protested, “I’m not meant to be an angel anymore and there’s a reason for that.” This was how is how it should be, was what he wanted. The natural conclusion of using up his grace such as he was cut off from Heaven.

“For us to survive this Crisis Cas must become Castiel again.”

“Wait!”

Ignoring him the Monitor simply waved a hand in the air. Cas was bolled over with a pain that would be the mortal equivalent of being hit by a truck. Every inch of his vessel shined with blinding grace. If any human had been in the corridor with the two celestials undoubtably they would not have survived.

When the light died away Cas stood up straight. Holding his hands in front of his face he could see his grace swirling just under his vessel’s skin, as strong as the day he first descended into Hell to rescue the righteous man. A familiar weight settled on his back, one he hadn’t felt in years. Flexing his now healed and whole wings he stared at the Monitor in disbelief.

“Now go and fulfill your higher purpose.” The Monitor’s lips pulled in an unnerving inhuman way, “Earth-14 awaits you.”

Cas blinked and he was alone again, in more ways than one.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Sam found Kara with Kate in the Waverider’s mess.

“So Luthor,” Sam said jerking a thumb over his shoulder, “He’s an even bigger dick than in the comics. I didn’t think that was possible.”

Kara’s head rose as he entered. She tensed for a moment, then sagged with relief as seeing it was just him, “A few words come to mind. Psychopathic lunatic. Homicidal madman.” Kara said taking a seat at the big dining table.

Kate came to lean against the table beside Kara and bummed her shoulder in solidarity, “Well I haven’t even met the guy and I want to punch him.”

Sam let out a humorless laugh, “Yeah, get in line.”

Kara bit her lip, hoping the pain would ground her a bit before continuing, “When I think about all the misery that man has caused, to my planet, to my family...” she blinked hard when her eyes began to water, “and I… when I think of all those people on my Earth that we wanted to save but couldn't, it just feels unfair.”

“Look,” Kate’s face pinched in pain before deciding to be vulnerable for the first time in a long time, “A day ago, I didn't think my life could get any worse. My sister murdered my stepmom and framed my dad for it.”

Kara gulped, “Wow. That's dark, even for Gotham.”

Kata nodded in agreement, “I'm fighting for a chance to make it right, and this fourth Paragon, my cousin Bruce on another Earth, finding him might help me get that chance.”

“Kate’s right.” Sam said placing his palms against the tables surface as if the table alone could give him strength to keep standing, “I’ve been fighting for so long I literally can’t remember a time before. When I was a baby a demon murdered my mother…”

“Oh Sam,” Kara said suddenly standing, hand outstretched to lend any comfort she could to him. When the brothers had said they’d been hunters they didn’t give much else to go off of. She still knew precious little about their lives before the Crisis began.

“Monsters and demons have plagued my family since I was born. And ever since then it’s been one world ending threat after another. I’ve lost almost of my family and more friends than I’d care to say. We’ve given up everything to save the world.”

An uneasy feeling bloomed in Kara’s stomach and she had to push it down, “When you said you’ve lost count how many times you’ve come back that wasn’t a joke? Was it?”

“No,” Sam shook his head, “Now the world we’ve died for is gone and I don’t know what to do except to keep going. Keep fighting for the change to make it right.”

Kara’s heart went out to Sam and Kate. How much could these people be expected to withstand and not break, “Only if you believe the Monitor.”

“What kind of talk is that from the Paragon of Hope?” Kate unzipped her jacket pocket and pulled up an extrapolator, “Come with me.”

“But I,” Kara began.

Sam placed his huge hand on her shoulder, “Look after my dumb big brother,” he said aiming for humor but worry bled through to his face.

Kara nodded and covered his hand with her own, “Of course. What about you?” Kara asked, brows furrowed.

“Sara said something about bringing Oliver back to life. As an unofficial expert on the matter I thought I’d lend a hand.” Sam answered. The last thing they needed was zombie running around in the midst of the crisis.

“Oh,” Kara’s eyes got huge. Why she even surprised anymore? “Well ah. Good luck with that.”

“And good luck with finding Batman.” Sam couldn’t believe he just said that unironically, “What even is my life now?”

“All things considered it led you here so I’m not complaining too much,” Kara smiled softly up at him.

Kate glanced at Kara, then Sam, then back to Kara. Rolling her eyes good naturedly she stepped between the two, grabbed Kara’s arm and dragged her towards the door, “Ok. Come on. Let's go save the universe. Then you can get back to your boyfriend.”

“Hey!” Kara and Sam snapped out of it and protested at the same time.

“If the shoe fits.” Kate raised the extrapolator, thumb poised to activate it “Wait,” she paused. They were still down a man, “Where the hell is Dean?”

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Dean was supposed to have left with Kate ten minutes ago. The mission should have had him excited. For goodness sakes he was about to meet the freakin Batman. His inner fangirl should have been loosing it, and yes Charlie had argued many and hour with him that his love of Batman was at a ‘fangirl’s’ level. But for all that Dean could only think about one thing at the moment. He’d lost his angel.

While Dean mused over this thoughts he wandered the corridors of the Waverider. Even with the discovery that their mother was alive, Dean still had precious little family left. He wanted to keep an eye on as many as he could. Earlier he’d passed by Sam and Kara on the bridge. He had intended to join the nerds in whatever it was that held their attention on the huge screen thing. Then he’d seen Sam and Kara holding hands and welp a big brother needed to help out his kid brother when ever possible. Hopefully Sam would get his head out of his ass before too long. A little, pushed down voice told him not be the one to call the kettle black but as usual his ignored it.

And for goodnesss sakes where was his angel?!

Now if you asked him he’d would never admit to internally phrasing it that way. He didn’t even know exactly when he started thinking of Cas as “his angel” rather than “the angel”. He thinks it must have been sometime after purgatory. The little assbutt had made him trudge around that damn forest long enough. And ever since then there’d been this unspoken and unacknowledged thing between them. Hell it might have started before purgatory but Dean had upright refused to think about it before that point. Even now in his own head he was still in denial land. All he knew was that something had definitely changed between him and Cas in purgatory.

Maybe he’d been about to say something years ago in that damn crypt while Cas beat him senseless and Dean tried to break through to his closest friend. Maybe he’d been about to say something but all that had came out was ‘I need you’. Then Cas had fled with the angel tablet. Then there’d been Abaddon and then Mark of Cain, then the Darkness and one holy hell of a mess after another after another. Nothing had ever come of it. That was probably for the best.

He groaned and pulled at his short hair. He was poison. He knew it. Cas had to have known it too if this thing had gone on for so long with nothing happening. God, how long had they known each other? Going on maybe ten years. He’d never taken this long before. Hell Sam even came close to calling him out of his bullshit numerous time but then the end of the world would pop up again. And as always there was no time. Just like now.

A familiar sound fluttered behind him. Familiar, but one that he hadn’t heard in forever. Familiar in that is sent a warm shock of affection through his system and terrifying at the same time as it begged the question; How?

For the first time in an age Dean heard angel wings.

As if his thought summoned him, making Dean wonder if he’d accidently sent out a prayer, Cas was standing right behind Dean. The angels own wide eyes matched his, as if just as surprised at his appearance as the hunter.

“Cas?” Dean breathed a sigh of relief but was still warry. Cas hadn’t been able to fly since The Fall so how…

“The Monitor restored my grace.” Cas said answering his unspoken question. Dean didn’t miss how absolutely miserable the angel seemed about that.

“Cas?” Dean tried to wrap his head around this new development. “How? Why?”

“He said that Castiel was needed.” Was the angel’s reply.

“But Cas, isn’t that a good thing?” Dean was very worried for his angel right now. Having been given a big power boost Dean would think the dude would be thrilled. Right now it looked like someone had just stepped on a bee in front of Cas.

“It means I’m useful again.”

“Cas you’ve always been useful.”

“You mean my power was useful. You’ve always called when you needed me.” No longer was he the near emotionless angel Dean met in that barn in Pontiac. Years of pent-up frustration began to bleed into Cas’s voice.

“Yes, I did need you.” Dean wasn’t understanding. With his mojo back Cas had more firepower, and in this crisis it was desperately needed. He took a pause and tried to steer the conversation back to how this had happened, “The Monitor gave you your mojo back.”

“He didn’t give me a choice in the matter.” Cas mumbled so low Dean barely heard it. Then louder, “Its exactly what the angels did. It they needed something they just went into my head and changed me. Now my choice has been taken away again. This power, it set me apart from humanity,” Up till this point Cas had resolutely refused to move his gaze from the floor but now he raised his blue eyes to Dean’s, “It set me apart from you.

Now Dean was starting to get it. Need. That’s the word that Cas hated, “Cas man,” Dean rubbed the back of his neck, not quite able to say the word he meant when he said ‘need’ but wanting to say something, “When I say I need you, I mean you. Sure the angel mojo is great and helpful as hell in a pinch. But I’d rather have you, powered up or not.”

“Dean,” Cas began but stopped when Dean held up a hand.

“Knowing you have your mojo back will let me sleep easier at night knowing you can keep yourself safe but…” Dean rubbed a palm down his face, “If after this is all over you want to fall then you know you got a place with me and Sam.”

“Thank you Dean,” Cas, Dean noticed, appeared ten times lighter, “The Monitor is sending me to Earth-14.”

And there went the bottom of Dean’s stomach. A cold fear crept into his throat, “Cas there’s things you should know. Things I never told you, or Sam about that place. The me that’s there. He’s in a bad way man.”

“I’ll handle it.”

“I know you will,” Dean had thought that he would never have to revisit the painful memory of the future that never was. Like so much in his life the past came back to bite, “Just be careful.”

“I will.” Cas said. And when did he get so close to Dean? “And you be safe.” Cas said stepping closer which Dean hadn’t thought possible but he wasn’t complaining.

This Dean noted this and felt the tips of his ears burning red. Licking his lips he grunted out, “You know me,” He said with his cocky side smile that had earned him numerous phone numbers over the years.

Cas’s face crinkled fondly as he took in Dean, “That’s my point.”

“Hey Dean!” Kate shouted suddenly making the two men jump apart, “Get a move on before I leave your ass!” She said and ducked back around the corner she appeared from.

“Yes ma’am.” Dean mock saluted her, ‘Cas we’ll talk when we both get back.”

Dean started down the hallway after Kate only making it halfway before pausing, shoulders hunched. Turing on his heel he stalked back to Cas and grabbed the angel in a bone crushing hug that rivaled their embrace in purgatory. Only this one was a thousand times better as the dang socially awkward angel actually hugged back.

“You take care of yourself, you hear.”

“I will.”

“Or I will raise your ass and kill you myself.” Dean if at all possible, tightened his grip on the angel.

“Yes Dean,” And the hunter could practically feel Cas’s rolling his eyes, “I get the picture.”

Dean stepped back and before his brain could step in and squash the chick-flick moment he bopped Cas on the chin in a mirror of how he had done the same in purgatory. A blush spread over his face in embarrassment, but it lessened when Cas didn’t seem to mind, “I mean it.”

“If I plan to do anything stupid, I’ll let you know.”

Dean chuckled and lowered his gaze from Cas’s piercing blue one, “Whoever taught you to be a sarcastic SOB should be punched.”

“I would never punch you.” Cas said with his head tilted adorably to the side, seemingly aghast as the suggestion. Cas was the picture of pure innocence.

Dean opened his mouth to throw something back but closed it when the angel’s serious face broke and mirth leaked through.

“Ok that’s it I’m leaving.” Dean threw his hands up. And with a whirl that would have had his cape billowing, if he had a cape (damn he needed to get a cape to fit in around here) Dean hurried down the corridor. He rounded the corner and Cas thought that was it. Then Dean poked his head back, “Have fun storming the castle. Don’t die.” He said jamming a finger in Cas’s direction. And he was gone.

“Castle?” Cas frowned at Dean’s choice of words. Surely there wasn’t going to be a Castle on Earth-14? Humans were strange. But Dean was his human. Maybe he wasn’t so alone after all.

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

Earth 99

“So the Paragon of Courage is apparently afraid of yardwork.” Kara carefully picked her way across the positively run-down front gate of Wayne Manor.

When they came to an old Rolls Royce laying half consumed by plant life Dean clutched a hand over his heart, “Now that’s just wrong.”

Kate only let out a huff and took the lead, “Better let me do the talking.”

They made it up the rickety steps. Dean only managing to stumble once when his foot fell through the floorboards. With Kara’s help he kicked his leg loose and looked skywards, as if asking a higher power “why him?”.

Kate knocked on the thick oak door. Of all the things the three expected to answer, it wasn’t a young, handsome black man with his shirt completely unbuttoned like a playboy.

“Wow.” Kate was taken aback, “That’s a really impressive six pack.”

Kara cleared her throat pointedly.

“Sorry.” Kate shook herself.

“Do I know you?” The man was unimpressed.

“No. But I know you. Or well a less this version of you,” Kate shuffled, extremely uncomfortable. Dean and Kara got the impression that this guy was someone very different on her own earth.

“Kate.” Dean prodded.

“Right, I’m Kate Kane,” Clearly she thought that would get a reaction from this guy, but nothing. So Kate added, “I’m Bruce’s cousin.”

The guy raised his eyebrow, “Yeah no,” and promptly shut the door in their faces.

“Well, he’s a lovely fellow.” Dean bit back sarcastically.

“Earth-one villain?” Kara side eyed Kate.

“Only friend actually.” Kate blushed.

“Oh,” Kara leaned in conspiratorially, “Well, at least, he's cute.”

Kata looked at Kara, back to the door, back to Kara, “Nope. Uh-uh. Let's not make that weird. That’s weird.” Kate tried the door handle only to find it locked and groaned in frustration.

“Here,” Dean gently pushed her aside, “I got this.” The confidence in his posture rose as he took a step back and shoved his full body weight against the door… Which he bounced right off of, “Huh mmm?” He rubbed his side in pain and threw himself against the door again. Then he tried the door handles, which Kate had just done thank you very much. If Kate’s eyes had lasers Dean would have been a burnt and smoking pile of ash. Finally, pride wounded, he rested his back against the unmoving entrance and raised his head to the two women, “I don’t got this.”

Kara bit the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing, “May I?” she raised her hand at the door.

Dean hesitated for a second, then shoved off the door, “Yeah.” Frustration coloring his voice a bit shrill.

“Ahem.” Kara straightened her glasses, raised her foot, and kicked the door right out of the brick wall. The door flew inwards a few feet and crashed to the floor, shattering the tile beneath it.

Dean held his hands up, shocked. The sides of his mouth pulled up, impressed and he shrugged. He and Kate shared a look and followed right in behind Kara.

The sound of a gun cocking stopped the three in their tracks. The man who greeted them stood in the hallway aiming a handgun right at Kate’s forehead. Kara stepped in front of Kate and Dean.

“You need to leave. Now!” He did not appear to be messing around.

Dean had just about had enough and was reaching for his own gun. There was no doubt in his mind he could shoot he gun out of this kid’s hand without harming him. A voice brought him up short.

“Don't be so rude, Luke.” A rough craggily voice echoed from a staircase, “You'll have to forgive him.” Each word was punctuated by a heavy footstep that they could feel vibrating through the floor. As the unseen figure got closer so did the sound of gears and metal whirring, “We're not used to having guests.”

At last, the man came into view. The lines on his face were deep and Dean recognized the haunted look in this man’s eyes. Hell, he’d seen it almost whenever he looked in the mirror. This was a man who seen too much and done too little. This was a man full of pain and regret with a broken body encased in a machine.

“Kate?” Batman looked like he’d seen a ghost.

“Bruce?” Kate wondered aloud.

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While Bruce took Kate into his library Luke lead Kara and Dean into a little off shoot of a room. Warily Luke holstered his gun in his waistband, “How did you two say you knew Kate?”

“We didn’t,” Dean matched Luke’s guarded stance.

Kara lowered her glasses, seeing the room in her x-ray vision. When she found what she was looking for she nudged Dean and glanced meaningfully over at the bookcase.

Dean’s face lit up like a Christmas tree, “The Batcave?” he exclaimed in a whisper, then hissed when Kara kicked him in the shin to shut him up. Luke was still in the room for crying out loud.

With a glare Dean limped away rubbing his the now very sore spot on his leg. Oh please, Kara didn’t kick him that hard. At least she thought she didn’t. Oops, “Sorry.” She mouthed at the hunter who waved off her apology. Then to Luke, “Kate and I are still getting to know each other.” She said righting her glasses.

Dean came to a stop in front of a glass case, a few of the items inside seeming familiar. Leaning down he saw a Joker card and nearly squealed in delight. But he didn’t cause he was Dean F-ing Winchester, he didn’t squeal. Wait… he leaned in for a closer look. Huh? Those cards were never covered in blood in the cartoons he’d watched as a kid and, he’d never tell Sammy, as an adult. The hairs on the back of his neck began to rise. Something about this was wrong, very wrong. On a shelf above the card was more items. A dead viney plant, a broken snow globe, and a cane with a question mark carved at the top snapped in half to name a few.

“What’s all this?” Dean asked Luke in the same interrogating tone he used while impersonating the FBI.

“Mementos from Batman's greatest victories.” The fond way Luke regarded the glass case made Dean’s stomach roll.

Kara came to a stop besides Dean, disgusted. “You mean trophies.” She threw bitingly over her shoulder.

Then Dean’s survey made it to the top shelf. There sitting in a place of obvious pride and honor were a pair of broken and familiar glasses, “Kara.” Dean said stiffy, grabbing her arm.

Kara was brought up short and she floundered for any kind of reaction. Her fingers were shaking where she pressed them up against the glass, “Are those?”

“Those belonged to Superman, his alter ego at least.” Luke had the audacity to look proud.

“Bruce killed this Earth's Superman?” Kara gasped.

Luke just narrowed his stare at the two, “Who do you think put him in that exoskeleton?”

Holy shit! That’s it. That’s all Dean could think.

Before Kara had time to process all the horrible things she was feeling Dean’s fist whipped out and collided with Luke’s chin. The young man crumpled to the ground.

“Kinda wish I could have done that,” Kara morosed.

“You’re welcome. Come on,” Dean unholstered his gun, “We need to get Kate and get out of here. Can you see her?”

Kara ripped her glasses off. It took her a few moments and then, “There!” She shouted, pointing to the floor, “She’s down in the Batcave with Bruce.”

Running to the bookshelf Kara pointed out when they first entered the room, he proceeded to fling every book to the floor.

“What are you doing?” Kara snapped, still stunned.

“I’ve seen enough Saturday morning cartoons to know that one of these has to be…” He came to a book that wouldn’t budge like the others and tilted it backwards. A click resounded across the room and a length of bookshelves pulled back to reveal an dank elevator shaft. “Yes!”

Kara punched her fist through the glass and took her cousin’s glasses. The broken plastic she pressed to her heart was more precious than all the riches in the world. In any world. No way was she leaving all that was left of this Earth’s Kal in the house of a madman.

“Damn.” Dean sized up the rusty cables tugging hard on one, watching it sway precariously, “I’m getting too old to be climbing things like this.”

“Don’t worry,” Kara said, her face dark and fierce. In a blue blur she was in her Supergirl costume, “I got you.”

“Now wait a minute.” Dean backed up, he hated flying, and the little jaunt with Superman earlier had been more than enough. “I’m sure there are stairs somewhere. Woah!” he protested too late. In a flash Kara had the hunter in her arms and down the shaft.

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“There was no hope for this world.” Bruce glowered at Kate.

“That's because you killed Superman!” Kara rushed forward out of the dark elevator shaft. Dean stumbled close on her heels and only a little green around the edges.

Kara continued, “This guy's not a paragon of anything. I was right. We can't trust the Monitor.” She held up the broken remains of Superman’s glasses.

“What did you do?” Kate took in this new information and slowly turned her head to her cousin, her stance dangerous.

Bruce glowered at Kate, “Clearly what you couldn't.

“Superman was the strongest weapon for good you all had.” Dean raised his gun.

“Strange visitor from another planet comes to Earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men and we just give him the keys to the kingdom?”

Bruce’s words hit a little to close to home for Dean. Wasn’t that exactly what he’d done when he’d met Cas. Sure it’d taken some time but something in him had made him trust the little nerdy angel. “I’ve dealt with my fair share of beings with extraordinary powers.” Dean squared his shoulders. “Some can be trusted,” he said thinking of Chuck, Garth, hell even Crowley had his moments.

“Superman was sent here to protect the Earth.” Kara clenched her fists.

Bruce slowly marched towards Kara, the gleam in his eye predatory, “Clark.” His spit the name out causing Kara to flinch, “Clark always said yes to anyone with a badge or a flag. He gave them too much power,” With each word the volume of his voice rose. “My parents taught me a very different lesson dying in the gutter. Life only makes sense if you force it to.” Suddenly his gloved hand wrapped itself around Kara neck and he heaved her upwards and threw her into Dean.

Dean cushioned her fall and rolled her shoulders up, stunned at the ease Batman used to strike Kara. Concern flooded through him when the kryptonian trembled and collapsed against him. Green glowing veins snaked across her neck and face. The hunter immediately recognized what was happening and knew they were in trouble.

Bruce slid open a compartment on his suit’s gauntlet, a glowing kryptonite stone inside, “A little souvenir from the old home town.” He snarled at Kate, who was crouched by Kara and Dean, “The Kate I knew didn't trust anyone, let alone a Kryptonian.”

“I don't know what happened to you, Bruce, but it ends now!” Kate jumped to her feet.

“Yes.” Bruce smiled with relief, “Go on. Let it end. Let it all end. This world's not worth saving in any universe!” He tensed to take another shot at where Kara laid helpless on the ground.

“That’s not your decision to make!” Dean shouted at the biter old man, suddenly seeing a younger version of himself from another future in Bruce’s place.

Kate was instantly standing in his way, “If you really think that, you're gonna have to kill one more person. Me!”

“Don't be a fool!” Bruce swung at her head, which she paired and kicked him back.

Batman yanked a batarang from his belt and swiped across Kate’s neck, just barely grazing the skin. Kate clasped her hard around her injured throat. Dean surged to his feet and threw himself at Bruce, his weight shoving the older man away from Kate.

Even in a broken and old body the Dark Knight was as fast as ever. In a rotary motion Bruce logged a batarang in Dean’s arm just under where Cas’s scar used to be.

But as fast as Batman was, he was no match for a Batwoman twenty years his senior. Going high she landed a kick directly to his chest.

Bruce, in his mechanical suit, lost his balance and fell backwards onto an old control panel. The spikes pierced the exposed parts of his back and electricity coursed in blue currents across his body.

Kate instinctively raced forward to save her cousin.

“Stay back.” Dean caught her sleeve just in time, “It’ll kill you.”

“Bruce!” Kate struggled against Dean’s grip until with a cry Bruce fell to the floor.

Steam rose up from the Dark Knight’s body, “Kate....listen to me. There is no hope.” And he slumped forwards, still.


End file.
